To Gain what is Lost
by Mo-chan769
Summary: Sailor Cosmos has returned to her own timeline and defeated Chaos at last. Though, these past few years have been painfully ripping at her heart, since her family and her dearest friends all fell to Chaos. She doesn't know what to do to stop the hurt and wonders if it will ever go away... but then she has a dream that sparks her curiosity to the point of interworld travel. R and R?
1. Prologue

**A/N: Trying out a really weird crossover idea here. Sailor Cosmos is my favorite scout and form of Sailor Moon. She is a wonderful person and has a scarred soul. She is very mature having lived in a long struggle against Chaos but wishes she could return to how things were when she was happy. She is a fallen queen with nothing left but the hope and courage she gained during a visit to her past. This courage is what helped her to defeat Chaos, but what did she do afterwards?**

To Gain what is Lost

**Prologue**

She'd found the courage to lose everything and the courage to save everything that had been lost. However, that didn't change the fact that she had lost everything she'd once held dear to her heart. At one time, she'd had a family. Her husband and daughter had both been lost to Chaos. She'd once had numerous friends who were as dear as family. They, too, had been lost to Chaos. In her despair she'd traveled back in time to help herself in the past. While she'd succeeded in that, it didn't change her future. Her timeline was an alternate from the one she'd helped make for her younger counterpart. However, in understanding the strength she'd once had and forgotten, she gained back her own strength. That is how she defeated Chaos in her time.

The former queen sat on a grassy hill in the once glorious kingdom of Crystal Tokyo. While some survivors had started to rebuild the kingdom with help from Cosmos, the ones who were dearest were to remain as they were: stars in the distant night sky. With most of the kingdom destroyed and Chaos gone, Cosmos had resigned from her title as queen and decided to become an everyday citizen. Though, the people believed in her and unofficially gave her a leadership position. Life had been this way for about 3 or 4 years, since the end of Chaos. Now, Chaos would return someday, as all starseeds do, but it would be a while and Chaos might not even be aware of its identity when it did come back.

"Cosmos, we just finished rebuilding the eastern sector earlier today." A man with black hair and an impressive mustache informed her. She nodded in acknowledgement of his statement and stood up, brushing the grass and specks of dirt from the skirt she wore. It was a knee-length skirt, a soft pink color, with lace details at the bottom edges. Her shirt was white, sleeveless and form-fitting.

"Good to hear, Kota. How go repairs in the southern sector?" She smiled at him with her purest smile, causing the man to hesitate due to distraction.

"Oh, we've just finished the library construction. Unfortunately, all the books and computers were destroyed in the war with Chaos. We should be able to have our historians and writers restock the library with knowledge in a few years' time." Kota told her this with much pride.

"Thank you for the update, Kota." She nodded toward him respectfully, her long white hair following her movements despite being tied up in heart-shaped pigtails. She looked ahead at the city being constructed. The palace used to be at the center of it all. But where it once stood was just a crumbled ruin. She'd decided that the rest of the city would be rebuilt first and wouldn't allow the survivors to spare a thought on rebuilding a palace for a queen who had failed the kingdom. In all honesty, she wasn't even sure what she wanted to do with her life now. She'd defeated her strongest enemy, learned enough lessons for as many lifetimes as she could imagine and had none of her family or closest friends to share it with. She had made friends of those who still lived in Crystal Tokyo but her heart was still broken. She felt emptiness like a big black hole. The black hole would devour any attempt she made at filling it.

Kota had gone toward his own home at some point while she'd quietly contemplated her state of being. That's just it; she just was, now. She felt that her reason for living had passed with her heart. She did care about the people left but knew that they could manage without her as they had when she left to go to the past.

She kept walking to her own humble abode as her mind raced. She entered the house and walked straight to the bedroom through the doorway right adjacent from the entry. Her dwelling was small but she was fine with that since she was only one person. She wasted no time in getting under the covers and hugging her pillow in an attempt to sleep. She closed her eyes and again saw that horrific day. The day that Chaos had destroyed her home and those dearest to her heart.

A_A_A_A_A

_Once the nightmare had run its course, as it did every night, she feared her subconscious would show it to her again. But instead, her mind was filled with images of a city. This city was not from the 30__th__ century but looked like one in the 21__st__ century. She remembered that time fondly in her childhood memories. However, it didn't look like Japan. The streets were busy like Tokyo, but the street signs were all written in English—and they were everywhere. Was this… America? She took a few steps forward, not sure if she was having an out of body experience or if someone would see her. _

_She was in her Cosmos uniform, staff in hand. Something urgent was going on somewhere nearby, for she heard sirens echoing between the tall buildings as they do. A few people ran up to her, one holding out a hand. This man was tall, blond and built like a tank. His muscled physique was only emphasized by the uniform he wore. The top he was blue until it reached to about the bottom of his sternum; below the blue were vertical alternating red and white stripes. He wore a dark brown belt that held up dark blue pants. A circular shield was strapped around his left forearm. It had a large white star in the middle surrounded by a blue circle. From there, three more circles circled the star, getting progressively larger up to the edge of the shield. The order of the color was red, white and then red again. _

_A mask, attached to his top like a hood on a jacket, was pulled down as he looked at her. His mouth moved, but no words came out. Whatever he'd said, it seemed important, so she took his gloved hand and tried to speak. _

"_Let's go." Those words escaped her lips. She'd heard her own words as the rest of this world had become muffled. _

"_Yes, Usagi, let's go." The blond man replied. His voice was deep, filled with confidence. _

A_A_A_A_A

It was then that Usagi woke. Her white hair was a mess and she put her right palm to her forehead, wondering what that had been about. Where was that? Who was that man? Why was she there? She wondered all these things at a breakneck pace until she heard his voice echoing in her thoughts. He'd used her name. She hadn't heard anyone call her that since everyone had died. Most people just called her Cosmos now because her blonde hair had permanently turned white after becoming Sailor Cosmos. She was a different person now, at least, to them she was. But to this mystery man she would be… herself?

**End Prologue**

**A/N: So what did y'all think of my newest crossover idea? It just came to me a little while back and I wasn't really sure if I wanted to go anywhere with it but I decided to treat this as a sort of pilot. And I'm up late anyway, because I have rude neighbors drinking and shouting in the courtyard outside my window for the second night in a row. Let me know what you all think; I'd love to know if this could go somewhere. **


	2. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hope everyone who's reading this liked the prologue. Anyway, not much to say here. It's an idea and it is interesting. Usually, I wouldn't cross Marvel over with Sailor Moon, but Cosmos can make it work. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 1**

Usagi took time the morning after her dream to consider what had happened. She'd seen images of a different time and likely a completely different universe. Being the guardian of the Cosmos, she found it easy to believe that she could have this dream. Perhaps it was some sort of message from the universe that she was needed for some sort of great change. She contemplated on this all through breakfast and for hours after. At some point in the afternoon, a few of the citizens of Crystal Tokyo had noticed her not paying much attention to the things outside of her mind.

She'd joined the group working on the western sector of the city repairs today. She had never been much of a heavy lifter so she helped move what she could. During a lunch break, she'd been approached by one of the other female workers.

"Cosmos, are you alright? You seem a bit out of it today…" The woman who approached her had short, curly brown hair the hung just below her ears. She was built well after having worked on repairs for the past few years. The woman looked well-muscled from shoulders to fingertips and she wore jeans and a tank top accompanied by a red bandana tied around her forehead to keep her bangs and sweat from getting in her eyes.

"Oh, Miss Noriko, I'm alright." The sudden words had brought the guardian out of her train of thought. "I've just been mulling over a strange dream that I had."

"Yeah?" Noriko questioned with interest as she sat down next to Usagi.

"I was… in another world. There was a man wearing some sort of uniform. And there was some sort of crime going on nearby. I think the man might've been a heroic guy from the look of urgency in his eyes when he asked me to go with him to the scene…" Usagi summed up her dream for her work buddy. As she spoke, a few others gathered and listened in on it.

"It sounds like you are interested looking into this." Noriko observed the tone with which the dream was relayed. Cosmos was in thought. And the way she talked about it sounded like she thought it might have potential to be real. The guardian didn't always have visions but when she did, they would have to do with important matters.

"I am." Usagi looked up at Noriko. "But I can't leave you all on your own right now." She turned her gaze to the others listening in. She had a look of concern for her people.

"And why not? You saved us from Chaos. You lost a lot, Cosmos. But what you gave us is more than enough." One of the men in the group said to her with a smile that fell into sympathy.

"Agreed. Besides, you aren't queen anymore, so you have no obligations to stay here. We can handle ourselves for a while. If you want to look into this, feel free." A second woman nodded her agreement to the first statement before adding her own.

"Are you sure?" Usagi was surprised by the words of the people. She hadn't known if they'd understand her on this matter. But to her amazement, they encouraged her to search out an answer. "What if something happens here while I'm gone?"

"We'll cope however we can until you return. You'll feel it if something goes awry, I assume." Noriko spoke up once more, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"Yeah." Usagi nodded. She found a smile creeping over her. This was perhaps the most genuine smile she'd felt in years. A purpose had resurfaced in her life and her people, her _friends_, wanted her to pursue it. She was grateful for the understanding they held. "Thanks, everyone."

A_A_A_A_A

Another afternoon of training in the Avengers mansion had him feeling pumped. He found that he rarely ever felt fatigued. Not since he'd been injected with the super soldier serum all those years ago. _Years._ It didn't seem like so much time had gone by but he knew from the obvious differences in the world that roughly 70 years had indeed passed since he'd become frozen in icy waters near the end of World War II. Adapting to the future was proving a unique challenge for him. He didn't understand a lot of things, be it technology or slang in the streets. What he did know was that he would do everything he could keep his people and his country safe. Not even just his country, _anyone that needed his help_.

Steven Rogers reached for a towel hanging on the edge of a weight rack a few feet away and lightly dabbed his forehead with it. He tucked the towel in his pants pocket and proceeded to put away the punching bag he'd been beating on for the most of two hours. He unhooked it from the chain dangling from a ceiling fixture and easily carried it to the side of the room, against a wall where nobody would trip over it.

His blond hair matted to the top and sides of his head, drenched with sweat. He may as well take a quick shower to rid himself of the light layer of sweat covering his body. He had roughly an hour until he was expected to arrive at one of Tony's lavish cocktail parties. Steve found himself sighing at the mandatory attendance notice that Tony had sent him just the day before. That man just loved the spotlight and showing off his money.

All the current Avengers were supposed to attend this party, according to Tony's invites. Steve could only guess why. Stark felt it was good to let the press have some 'treats' every now and then so that they would behave and not become too invasive in the everyday lives of the heroes. So with one more sigh as he walked from the exercise facility to the adjacent shower room, Steve couldn't think of an argument aside from not liking the thought of being in the spotlight. At least the others were expected to attend. Maybe he wouldn't be the life of the party. Clint, Natasha, Bruce, Hank, Jan and T'Challa were all supposed to be there with him.

Steve wondered how the night would go as he tossed his sweaty towel into a laundry hamper off to the side of the shower stalls. Maybe it would go smoothly and he wouldn't gather too much attention since the populace was adapting to him being around again. He had been awake for the majority of a year. He removed his drenched tank top and sweatpants, followed by a plain blue pair of boxer briefs, all into the laundry hamper with the towel. He turned the shower nozzle for hot water and stepped in.

A_A_A_A_A

Usagi had prepared herself for travel and called a meeting of everyone in the city to inform them of her decision to look into the dream she'd had. While many of them were sad to see her go, they were also supportive of her decision. She felt like a young adult leaving home for the first time to live on their own. The numbness of her mind when she tried to think of anything but her destination was bothersome but she did her best to pay it no mind.

She now stood where the royal garden used to be, in the ruined palace's former courtyard. She remembered the times she'd spent here with her family fondly. Mamoru, her late husband, had made an effort to color-code each and every rose to make the atmosphere as wonderful as possible. Chibiusa, her daughter and the princess of the Silver Millennium, had always come out to the garden at night when she wasn't busied with studying. Usagi knew that because she looked out over her balcony each night to see two things: the moon and the gardens. And in the gardens, she'd see her heir admiring each and every bloom.

But the garden was no more. All that remained were crumbled pieces of foundation and tiny pebbles of the palace walls. The beauty was gone with the star seeds of her loved ones. She held back her sorrows and looked once more at the dirt and rubble in front of her. This may be the last time she would ever see this place so she breathed in deeply and closed her eyes.

_I can do this. I need to move on and learn what my dream was about. I will begin a new journey._ She wanted to start a new life in a different world; she couldn't deny that anymore than she could admit it to her people. She didn't plan to come back except to visit occasionally or if she felt Chaos' seed being reborn. She would always be waiting for the day that she felt that darkness once more. She would be ready to do what she could to keep the balance of the universe. She turned away from the once beautiful gardens and looked to the sky. It was cloudless and such a pretty blue. _I'll miss this place._

With that, Usagi closed her bright blue eyes and suddenly materialized into her uniform, staff and all. She breathed in and out slowly and vanished from where she stood seconds later.

A_A_A_A_A

"Tony, why do you think inviting me to a party with paparazzi, reporters and socialites like yourself is a good idea?" Bruce's less than enthusiastic words were ignored by the billionaire to whom they addressed. Tony just showed his suave grin and winked before moving on to mingle with a trio of attractive ladies he'd spotted.

Steve stood at Bruce's side, also a bit uncomfortable. He wasn't uncomfortable for the same reason as Bruce; he felt that the man could keep the Hulk from making an appearance. Steve's discomfort was just the fancy party in general. He liked a good shindig as much as the next guy, but Tony always went over the top. He adjusted his tie for a good twenty seconds before looking at the crowd. Some were dancing to the piano music being played be a professional that Tony paid. Some were mingling at the food tables set up at the side of the large room. Some were at the bar that sat opposite of the food. Steve a saw that Clint and Natasha were sitting together at the bar while Hank was getting a finger sandwich for Jan, who sat waiting on a couch. T'Challa sat next to Jan and chatted with her and a small group of people who had approached minutes earlier.

They all seemed pretty comfortable. Steve wondered how much more interesting it would've been if Thor made an appearance. The Asgardian had returned to his home to visit roughly a month ago, after helping the team to take down a crime ring of villains plotting to take over New York. Steve didn't remember what the group had called themselves because they weren't much of a threat when compared with others like Zemo or Kang. These lower ranking hooligans were trouble but nothing that the Avengers couldn't handle.

And so, the party carried on. Steve was chat up by a few fans and reporters. Paparazzi enjoyed getting pictures of each Avenger at some point without any warning. He was having a good time as the party rolled on. After a few hours, the energy level was going down and people started leaving due to the hour. Tony, buzzed, was happy to give farewells to his guests as they headed out. Most of the Avengers had left earlier on. Bruce had gone to his assigned guestroom in Tony's home for the night. Hank and Jan went to Jan's penthouse. T'Challa headed to the Wakondan embassy. Clint and Natasha had vanished; Steve didn't really know where those two had headed but he assumed they would be fine. Steve was ready to call it a night and had been offered a guestroom for the evening as well.

He arrived at his room shortly after excusing himself from the event. His room was simple, but also very modern. There was a queen-sized bed with curtains drawn back around the bed posts. The bed was placed against the wall on the left side of the room from the entry door. A large TV screen was mounted on the wall directly across from the bed. Further back from the entry, a small, circular table was near the far wall with two chairs around it. There were also items like a small dresser and a mini fridge where they would fit. Another door directly to the right of the entry led to a decently sized bathroom with essentials. On the far wall of the bedroom was a sliding glass door that let out to a balcony. Steve pulled off his tux jacket and tie and left them on the bed before heading to the balcony.

_Might as well take a look at the view._ Steve didn't know what floor he was on but Stark Tower was a very tall building so he rightly expected a view of the city. He walked through the doorway and closed the door behind him. The city lights were pretty amazing from the height he stood at. They were so great in number but that didn't surprise him too much. New York was one of those cities that was said to never sleep, after all. It had always been one of the most populated cities in the United States, at least during his lifetime. The hero leaned on the five foot tall wall around the edge of the balcony. It was made of some sort of poured minerals.

He felt calm as he shifted his gaze from the city lights below to the sky above. The lights didn't allow for ideal stargazing but he could see a few really bright stars. Steve smiled with bewilderment. Space wasn't as unknown as it used to be even if they didn't know everything about it. Hell, Steve knew very little on the topic himself but he was willing to learn.

Suddenly, he saw a bright star moving across the sky. A shooting star! He was certain of it. It was always interesting to watch one fly across the sky. This one seemed peculiar though; Steve noticed a strange behavior after a few seconds. At first, the star appeared to be going straight across the sky but then it began to zigzag wildly back a forth. Suddenly, it started falling downward.

_What in blazes? It looks like it's falling into Central Park…_ Steve watched it flash brightly as it fell to the ground. Soon it had gone so low that he could no longer see it beyond the buildings. _That was… very odd._ Steve thought to himself, _I should check that out. I may not know much about stars, but I'm pretty positive that they don't usually have crazy flying patterns like that one._

A_A_A_A_A

"Ow… that landing was not as easy as I thought it would be." Usagi muttered to herself as she stood up and lightly rubbed her aching tailbone. She picked up her staff, which had fallen from her hands upon landing roughly. Her blue eyes searched the surrounding area briefly. It was night time and she appeared to have landed in a park. Not many people would be here this late, hopefully. She took a moment to de-materialize her staff and transform back into her day clothes. Jeans and a tank top were fine for now, though a little chill ran through her body.

"Well, isn't that a neat little trick?" A snide comment sounded from behind a tree. A man walked out; he was dressed like a stereotypical gangster. Leather jacket, torn jeans and a bandana tied around his head. "You one of those super powered weirdoes?"

She felt uncomfortable as the man walked up to her and reached out to try and stroke her cheek. She gently blocked his hand with her own and brushed it away. "I'd appreciate it if you didn't touch me."

"You're a pretty one, ain'tcha, girlie?" The man persisted on trying to touch her again and reached for a strand of hair this time. He ran his fingers through the strand regardless of her obvious disliking of his action. "Such long hair. And white? Is this natural?" The tone of his words wasn't hiding his less appealing desires one bit.

"Could you please stop that? I don't want to be forced to hurt someone so soon after arriving here…" Usagi took a step back, but only one step since her hair was in his grasp.

"You ever been to town? I could show ya around the block, if ya catch my drift." The man let her hair fall from his hand and moved closer. Usagi was soon backed into a tree. She felt the bark pushing on her back as she attempted to greaten her distance from this man. His hands went to her hips and gripped them firmly.

_Damn… I didn't want to hurt him but I might not have a choice. _Her mind raced. She focused her power and was once more in her Cosmos uniform. Her staff instantly materialized with her uniform and she wasted no time batting him over the head with it. She'd probably hit him a tad harder than necessary, but she wanted to be certain that he would be rendered unconscious. She breathed with relief as his body feel limply to the ground. She stepped over the body in her white heals (adorned with wings and pearls on the outside edges) and hadn't made it more than six feet before she heard another voice.

"What the hell did you do to Joey, you bitch?" The voice was angry and the words, slurred just ever so slightly. "I'll teach you to attack a member of the Red Bandana Crew!" Usagi turned quickly to see a second man dressed similarly to the first. He was angry, large and also wearing a red bandana on his head. This man had two or three comrades standing behind him who also looked angry with her. The man who had spoken took out a knife and charged at her!

The scout's eyes widened but she gathered herself right before the man was within range. She stepped to the side, barely avoiding the knife, and countered with her staff. She aimed at the side of his knee. She wasn't happy to do it, but she heard a disgusting crack as her staff made contact. He fell to the ground in pain, dropping his knife.

While she was busy with the second thug, one of the others who had been standing back pulled out a handgun and took aim. At the very moment that he pulled the trigger, his gun was smacked out of his hand by a round shield whisking through the air. It kept flying and went straight into a nearby tree, getting lodged into the trunk just a few inches. The gun had fired though, and the bullet headed toward Usagi! She'd heard the gunshot and immediately raised a barrier around herself for protection without even a thought about which direction it was coming from. The bullet hit the barrier and paused a moment, suspended in the air, before falling to the ground as a useless shell. The barrier vanished.

The remaining men in the gang had run away upon recognizing the shield thrown into the tree. Usagi saw this and took a few deep breaths to calm down. Her adrenaline was pumping too much for this time of the night. She looked toward the man who had appeared and was pulling the shield out of the tree as if it was not difficult at all. The shield looked just like the one in her dream!

The man mounted the shield onto his back, using the straps like they were attached to a backpack. He walked up to her slowly and with certain urgency in his step. As he came into view, Usagi saw that he was the same man from her dream as well. She hadn't expected to find him so soon. She found that she had a smile on her lips as he stopped and quickly examined her in an effort to make sure she was unharmed.

"Is it safe to assume that that smile means you're well?" The man's words sounded gentle and relieved that she was okay, with a small touch of humor as he'd noticed her smiling. She was shocked at the amount of compassion she could hear from that sentence.

She was quiet for a moment, wondering what to say, exactly. Then, without much thought, she answered bluntly. "My tailbone is a little sore." After saying it though, she felt silly and placed her hand lightly over her mouth.

"Hahaha, as long as that's it." The man chuckled at her words. "My name's Steve Rogers, also Captain America. What can I call you?" He reached out a hand, offering a handshake.

Usagi took his hand and shook firmly. "You may call me Usagi Tsukino, also Sailor Cosmos."

**End Chapter 1**


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Steve had contacted an ambulance and some police officers before leaving the scene in the park. He'd also invited Usagi to stay at Tony's for the evening. She accepted with little convincing needed since it was late and she'd also forgotten about money when she left. She hadn't really grabbed anything but a small pack with some clothes and hygienic basics. And she stored that bag in a spatial pocket that she could call forth whenever she wanted, similar to how she stored the Cosmos staff.

She decided to stay in uniform while they made their way to Tony's, but stored her staff in the spatial pocket. Her long white cape dusted the back of her calves as she walked next to Steve. Her blue eyes glanced sideways at the large man. It was hard to believe that someone with that build existed. She was impressed to say the least.

"Miss… Usagi, was it?" Steve addressed her politely and curiously, not sure if he was saying her name correctly, receiving a nod and her attention. "Where are you from? I get this feeling that you've never been to New York before."

"I haven't… I'm from far away." She wasn't sure how to explain that her birthplace was the Moon and that she was reborn in an alternate Tokyo, Japan where she grew up and eventually became queen of the Moon and the Earth. That would be for another time.

"How far?" Steve wondered. His curiosity was almost adorable, she thought. "I mean, if you don't mind my asking. It's just… the way you're dressed and the powers you exhibited back there. You're certainly a unique individual."

"Very far. I imagine you couldn't even fathom the distance to my homeland from here." Usagi smiled at him. He wasn't offended by her assumption at all, though he seemed the smallest bit disappointed. "What about you? What's your story?"

Steve paused a moment before finding the words to say. He wasn't used to people not knowing who he was anymore. It was refreshing to be able to introduce himself and not have the person listening already knowing everything he could say. "I guess you could say that I'm just an average guy from Brooklyn who found his way when he joined the army…" He scratched the top of his blond head. No need for him to go too deep into his back story for now.

Usagi smiled at his display as they kept walking. Soon enough, they were at Tony's mansion. Steve approached the intercom at the front door and called down a man named Jarvis. Just two minutes later, an older gent appeared at the door, holding it open for the two uniformed crime fighters. He dressed in appropriate butler attire—a white dress shirt under a black button-up vest and complimented by black slacks and dress shoes.

Jarvis let them in, introduced himself to Usagi and received a polite introduction from her, curtsy and all. He led the two to an empty guestroom ready for use. This would be Usagi's room for the evening. She marveled at the extravagance of the room. It seemed simple and elegant at the same time. A large, soft bed with curtains drawn back around it, sat in the middle of the room. Around it were other pieces of furniture, a coffee table, a couch, dresser, and a flat screen TV mounted on the wall. There was even an adjacent bathroom! Usagi was excited about that. This was certainly the fanciest room she'd seen in a long time.

Jarvis left the two in the room to return to his own room after giving Usagi the introductory tour of her guestroom. Usagi's eyes scanned the room once more before she turned her attention back to Steve. He was watching her with an almost amused grin, like watching a child play with his puppy. She shook her head lightly and grinned at him as well, an attempt to be goofy. He chuckled.

"Thank you for having me, Steve." Her smile was bright and genuine. He stared for a moment in silence before she continued. "You're sure your friend won't mind?"

"Tony often has ladies over… I'm sure he won't mind me inviting you to stay for one night. If he does, then that's too bad for him." Steve nodded as if he was reassuring himself.

There was an awkward silence between the two for a moment as they both smiled, not quite sure what to say. Usagi had no idea what to do or say at this point. She shyly cast her gaze to the wall to avoid making eye contact with Steve.

"Well… I'll leave you to get some rest then. Flying around erratically and then taking down a group of hoodlums has probably tired you out." Steve excused himself and headed for the door.

"Ah, Steve." Usagi said abruptly. He turned just his head at hearing his name. "I am truly grateful for your help this evening. You provided me a place to stay after scaring off those ruffians. I am in your debt." Usagi curtsied, bowing her head in respect.

Overwhelmed by her gesture, Steve quickly replied. "You don't need to indebt yourself to me. I just did what I felt was right. Really, just knowing you're not hurt is enough for me." She was taken aback by his words and displayed her pearly teeth once more in gratitude.

"If you're sure. I'll let you get to sleep then. Goodnight, Captain." She playfully saluted him as she wished him a goodnight. "Oh! And for what it's worth, those guys didn't tire me out at all." She'd added the last bit as an afterthought as Steve walked out, chuckling again at her words. He really was sincerely entertained.

Both heroes would go to sleep soon after their goodnights. Usagi slept comfortably and with her mind racing as fast as it could. She was eager to learn more about this world and the people in it. She warmly welcomed the new experiences she would have here, she'd decided.

A_A_A_A_A

Steve sat up in his bed, back leaning against the headboard. He was thinking about this new girl who had literally fallen from the sky. _What is she, I wonder? Maybe another alien of some kind._ His eyes appeared to be staring directly ahead but he was really just in a daze. For some reason, he was very interested in this girl. Be it the strange white hair, the strange uniform or the surprisingly calm behavior after being attacked in an unfamiliar place; Usagi Tsukino was an acquaintance worth interest.

_She's very beautiful too. Those blue eyes… she sees a lot more with those eyes than most do. _Steve felt embarrassed at himself when he caught his thoughts. "What am I thinking?" Steve laid his head down on his pillow with a sigh. He was still for a few moments before rolling to his side and closing his eyes.

A_A_A_A_A

Tony awoke the next morning like he did most days following a party. His head ached and his thoughts were a little fuzzy as he remembered that he'd gotten drunk. Jarvis, as if sensing his employer's awakening, walked into the room with a tray of breakfast and a glass of water with alka seltzer that had just been dropped in. A coffee also sat on the tray, but that wasn't the billionaire's first priority.

"Mr. Stark, good morning." Jarvis's voice was pleasant and not bothering Tony's headache one bit. Tony reached for the glass of water as the alka seltzer tablet fizzed. He downed it quickly before saying a word to his butler.

"Morning, Jarvis. What's on the agenda today?" Tony watched as Jarvis delicately took the glass Tony had finished and handed to him. He was a great butler, no doubt, ready to put up with whatever Tony gave him to do.

"You have an interview at noon for a magazine article and Mr. Pym has requested your assistance with a project afterwards." Tony inhaled his breakfast as Jarvis filled him in on his daily schedule.

"Anything else important?" He knew Jarvis would know what he considered to be important or unimportant.

"Steven did go out on a late night jaunt. He came back with a young woman who had been attacked by a gang." Jarvis informed Tony that he had a visitor he hadn't known about when he passed out the previous night. That could certainly be deemed important.

"What's her name?"

"I believe it was Usagi Tsukino."

"Sounds Japanese. Is she attractive?"

"She is quite beautiful. Contrary to her name though, she doesn't appear Japanese."

"Go on."

"She has blue eyes and white hair. She's also very pale, similar to the moon at night."

"Hair color is irrelevant; everyone seems to be dying it some unnatural color nowadays."

"Very true, Sir."

This sort of back-and-forth with Jarvis wasn't uncommon for Tony. He soon finished his breakfast after a few more questions and then stood up and stretched. Jarvis had left him to prepare for the day. There were also more breakfasts to be made and served.

A_A_A_A_A

Usagi's eyes fluttered open. She was still, looking at the ceiling as she remembered where she was. Stark Tower, at least, according to the large letters on the side of the building. The white-haired beauty sat up in her bed and glanced around. Everything seemed calm and relaxed around her. She pulled off the sheet that covered her and saw that she was still wearing yesterday's clothing.

_Shower time…_ She stood up sleepily and wandered to the bathroom joined to her room. A quick in and out shower was fine. She quickly lathered on soap and then rinsed. It seemed that shampoo, conditioner and lovely scented soap bars were available for use. In just fifteen minutes she walked out of the shower and dried off. She pulled her pack out of her space pocket and dug out some light pink capris and a fitted, lilac, v-necked T-shirt. She wrapped her hair in a second full-sized towel after squeezing and shaking some of the water out.

Walking out of the bathroom, she saw that Jarvis had paid a visit. Next to the bed, he'd left a fold out table with a tray of yummy breakfast foods and some coffee. While she'd never been one for the bitter flavor of coffee, she decided to have some once she noticed some creamer and a small sugar dish with a small spoon to the side.

She sat on the edge of her bed and ate the breakfast gratefully, savoring each bite. The omelet was pristine and the bacon was cooked to perfection. Even the coffee tasted good. As she put down the emptied mug there was a knock at the door.

"Miss Tsukino, may I come in?" The voice of Jarvis inquired politely from the other side of the door.

"Of course." After that, the door opened and the butler walked in, followed by a man she hadn't seen before. He stood at roughly six feet tall and wore a suave smirk on his lips. His eyes were blue, not unlike her own, but also calculating. He styled his short black hair in a refined manner. On his chin was a dark goatee. He also had a dark mustache well-kept on his upper lip. Usagi usually didn't like facial hair, but this man was cleanly cut and wore it well. He also wore expensive cologne, juding from a smell that made Usagi's nose twitch. "Good morning, gentlemen." She added that when she noticed this other man tagging along with Jarvis.

"And a good morning to you as well, Ma'am." A smile flashed on the butler's face.

As Jarvis gathered the dishes onto the tray to carry away the mess, Usagi looked at him. "Thank you for breakfast, Jarvis. It was delicious. It reminded me of a friend's cooking back home." A smile showed as she reminisced on Makoto's cooking. Jarvis nodded in acknowledgement of her words and then whisked out of the room with the dishes on the tray.

"So, Usagi, I hear Steve played late night hero before bed last night." Tony approached the young woman with his hands in the pockets of his lavish suit jacket. His pants matched the dark blue of the jacket and all were pressed professionally.

"I guess he did… Ah, are you his friend, Tony?" Usagi asked upon recalling Steve's mentioning of who actually lived in this building.

"I am. Tony Stark, nice to meet you." Tony managed a quick wink and took hold of her right hand to shake.

"Likewise." She'd seen his wink and chosen to ignore it as they shook hands. "Then I must thank you for accepting my company here."

"It's no big deal. It's not often that the Captain brings a pretty woman to his lodgings… Scratch that, I don't know if he's ever done that." Tony had fun commenting on Steve's behavior. Usagi blinked, finding no relevance between Steve's personal life and her staying at Tony's but she thought it best not to ask.

"Ah, is Steve awake yet?"

"He's doing his morning workout in my training facility. But on another topic, I heard you had white hair?" Tony pointed to the towel on the girl's head as if requesting its removal.

Usagi undid the twisting of the towel around her hair and put it next to her on the bed. Her long, snow white locks fell, still a little damp, down to the bed. If she'd been standing, it would've fallen well past her buttocks and probably to her knees.

"Hm, long. And white." Tony stated this plainly as if he was just observing. "Looks natural. You must have a good hairdresser."

"I actually don't have a hairdresser right now… It just does this on its own." Usagi told the man. She saw no harm in being honest. After all, the last time she'd had time to worry about her hair was many years ago.

"Uh huh." Tony raised a skeptical eyebrow at her. "Well then, I've got a meeting in an hour and a half so I've got to start on my way. Apparently it's important enough for Pepper to send me three reminders in the last hour. It was nice meeting you, Usagi-chan." Tony winked as he used a title of familiarity in Japanese. He then left the room before she'd had a chance to say more than a goodbye.

_Busy man… _Usagi kept the comment in her head. She decided to get up from the bed and find Steve, wherever he was. It couldn't be too hard to find him, right? Unfortunately for her, Tony's house was like a maze to those who didn't know the layout. She wandered around for about ten minutes before she began to think of asking Jarvis for help.

She'd come to an unfamiliar hall somewhere in the building. Looking down the length of the hall, she could only see doors. Many doors. Most of these doors were closed so she wondered what was behind them. As she glanced side to side, she walked more slowly than before, debating on whether or not she should stop and peek into a few rooms. _No, that would be rude._ As soon as she'd decided on that, she was getting a face full of door. A door had opened and she had crashed right into it. Her hands went to her face instantly in an attempt to protect from possible further damage.

She staggered back a few steps and a man realized he had hit someone with the door. This man had brown hair. It was a bit messy and the man was pretty skinny, wearing jeans and an old T-shirt. "Oh, I'm sorry about that Miss." He approached her slowly and gently removed her hands from her face to check her for injury. Her nose was bleeding.

"My nose…" Usagi muttered.

"Here you go. You can sit down in here for a few minutes until it stops." The man led her into the room he'd just exited after handing her a tissue. The room looked like a small lab; it reminded Usagi of high school chemistry class, except the equipment was more expensive-looking and not being used by a bunch of teenagers. The counters were covered with test tubes and beakers filled with differently colored solutions. The smell of the chemicals made Usagi's nose wrinkle slightly. It wasn't a pleasant scent but not the worst in the world. The man led her to a chair and sat her down. He set a chair a few feet in front of her and sat himself down as well.

"Thank you… What's your name?" Usagi wanted to thank him properly.

"… I'm Bruce." The man hesitated momentarily. But after looking at her eyes, he deduced that there wouldn't be harm in telling her.

"Thank you for helping me, Bruce." Usagi bowed her head slightly in gratitude.

"It's no problem. What's your name?"

"Usagi is my name. I was looking for Steve…" She held the tissue to her nose as she tilted her head back to keep the blood from dripping out.

"Oh? Are you a friend of his?" Bruce asked, suddenly sounding more inviting.

Usagi thought for a moment. Steve had helped her the night before and offered a place to stay. He had spoken to her on friendly terms and they had laughed a bit together. But she still barely knew him. After a few seconds of contemplation, she smiled, though it hardly be seen behind the hand that held the tissue to her nose. "I'm not sure, but he seems nice. So I hope we can become friends. You see, he scared off a group of thugs that were bothering me last night."

Bruce smiled and even let out a small chuckle. "You seem like a nice young woman. I don't think you'll have trouble. I guess you're lucky he was in the park investigating that strange 'falling star' that he saw. With a pattern like that, I would hardly call it a star. But he came back with no news of what it was. He did mention helping you and inviting you to stay the evening when I ran into him this morning."

"Falling star? Oh…" It took her a moment to realize that she was probably the falling star to which Bruce referred. "Bruce?"

"Yes?"

"Around here, are superhuman abilities common? One of those thugs last night mentioned such a thing." She thought that asking that before telling who or what she was would be best.

"I wouldn't go as far as saying that they are common. Most people know of the possibility after witnessing all the chaos it can bring though."

"Chaos?" Her ears had perked up upon hearing that word.

"Don't misunderstand; good things come from superhuman abilities as well. Now, might I ask you a few questions, Miss Usagi?"

"Sure." She nodded, a few strands of her hair fell over her shoulder. She realized she hadn't put it up in the usual pigtails.

"You aren't from here, are you? If you were, you'd probably have known the answer to your question." Bruce was smiling with intrigue as he continued on. "Where are you from then?"

"Somewhere very far away." Her tone was distant and her eyes became downcast as she remembered her home with a bittersweet expression on her lips. It wasn't a smile but she wasn't frowning either. This look was somewhere between the two.

"You left?" Bruce saw a familiar emotion in her eyes and heard it in her words. She was homesick but determined to not return.

"I did. I felt I could start over here." She answered without thinking. She caught herself before saying more. "You probably don't want to hear my sob stories."

Bruce shook his head gently. "I don't really mind much. I could already deduce those things about you. I wanted to check to be sure."

Usagi was surprised by his observation skill abut then smiled at him, taking the tissue off of her nose at last. "I'm so obvious, am I?" To her joy, her nose was no longer bleeding.

"I'm just good at reading others." Bruce assured her. He stood up from his seat and offered a hand to help her up. She took hold of it gratefully and also stood up. "Now then, Steve should be about done with his morning workout. I can take you to the training facility if you'd like."

"Please… I don't really know where anything is yet."

The two began walking out the door and down the hallway. With Bruce leading the way, she was feeling relieved. "If you'd like, you can probably stay at the Avengers Mansion with Steve and me. Some of our other teammates come and go as they please, so someone else might be there. I stay for my own reasons and Steve is still getting used to the area; I figure he'll move out when he feels like it."

"If you don't mind, I guess I could." She was blushing lightly at how friendly Bruce was being toward her. He was definitely a good man.

"Like I said, you seem nice. And if Steve trusts you, then that speaks volumes." He walked a few paces ahead of her. She looked at his back. His stride didn't seem to match him well. He slouched a smidge and had a quick-paced step. His brown hair looked like it was getting to the point where it was too long for him to manage. She felt that he must work hard at whatever it was that he did because he seemed like a nice guy that would care about grooming if he wasn't too distracted by something else.

She was reminded that her hair was not up once more as she felt it on the back of her neck, gently caressing her skin. She thought it would be okay to leave down for a day. After all, this world was her fresh start. She followed Bruce for a good five minutes; he would occasionally point out an important room for her to know about like bathrooms and the kitchen. Soon they arrived at a closed door with a keypad next to it. Bruce pushed a few buttons and then it slid open on its own.

"Steve, your guest has been looking for you." Bruce called to the man as he saw the man he addressed putting away some equipment.

"Oh, sorry about that." He finished putting away the bag he was carrying and walked over to Bruce and Usagi. "I was planning on heading up to your room after I cleaned up a little." He was looking at Usagi sheepishly. His smile displayed his good nature.

Usagi quickly scanned him from head to toe with her eyes. He wore sweatpants and a tank top. His arms were bare and she felt that the fact was almost scandalous because they were so nicely muscled. After seconds of staring, she realized that he was waiting for her to say something and she felt her face flushing. "Ah, it's fine. No biggie. I got to meet Bruce because I started wandering around, so something good came of it." She gestured while she spoke. Her hands were a little frantic.

"You're too kind." Bruce chuckled and smiled. "I've got to return to my experiment, though. The chemical mixtures can only sit so long before they become useless and I have to start over." The man turned to the door and started heading out. "It was nice meeting you, Usagi."

"It was nice meeting you too! I'm sure I'll see you again later." She called after him.

As Bruce exited, he was smiling to himself. _She's so… kind. It's strange how calm I find myself feeling right now. I wonder what her power is._ With no more words, he walked out of the sigh of the others to return to the lab.

"You two seem to be getting along." Steve observed as he picked a towel off of his shoulder and dabbed sweat from his forehead.

"Yeah, I got lost in the halls and he found me. He's a nice man." She told him this in a very straightforward manner. She looked at Steve, her eyes going back to his arms for a moment before she made herself focus on his face. "So, do you, uh, workout every morning?"

"I usually do. It's a good habit I guess." Steve shrugged. "Oh, I wanted to ask you something. You said you were from far away and that you've never been to town before, right?" His voice suddenly took on an excited tone.

"I did. What's your question?" Her curiosity was evident as her large eyes shone in the light of the room.

"Once I get all cleaned up, would you like to explore around town? I'm still adapting to it myself and I thought it might be a good idea for both of us to find something to do since I have nothing else planned for today." Steve looked down into her eyes for an indication of her answer as soon as he finished speaking. Usagi saw the eager anticipation in his blue eyes even if he wasn't physically emoting.

"That sounds fun. I heard that New York is well-known for being a fashion capital of the world. I'm sure we'll see some interesting things." She did remember Mina talking about New York on more than one occasion in the past. Her friend had always been interested in famous people and fashions, so, naturally, she'd mentioned many cities that had large markets for that sort of thing. She pulled her thoughts away from the past once more and looked up at Steve, practically glowing as she smiled.

"I'll be quick then. It might be best if you wait in here… since you got lost earlier." Steve almost left, but had taken no more than three steps toward the shower rooms adjacent to the training facility before stopping and turning to her with a shy expression.

"I don't mind waiting." She sat down on the floor with a grin and leaned her back against the wall behind her. "I'll be here."

Steve nodded and then left to shower. He didn't quite understand what he liked so much about her, but he knew he found her to be a very likeable person. She seemed honest and very kind. The way that she carried herself with confidence but also had eyes that reflected a lot of experience in life was appealing to him somehow. He couldn't help wanting to know more about her. And he would go about starting that after he showered.


	4. Chapter 3

**A/N: I hope you've all been enjoying the story up to this point! I know I'm having quite an interesting time with it myself. I've been happy with the reviews so far. So please, keep them coming. Whether they're love, hate or constructive criticism! I'll take it! Anyway, over the next few chapters, Usagi will be getting to know more Avengers and becomes more well-acquainted with those she already knows. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 3**

Usagi's eyes fluttered open as she felt a gentle hand touch her shoulder and lightly shake her awake. She looked up to see Steve smiling at her. She had been waiting for him to clean up and must've fallen asleep.

"I wasn't that long was I? By my watch that was ten minutes."He looked at his wristwatch, wondering if she was just tired. "If you're too tired, you don't have to—"

"No, I want to go with you. I just dozed off…" She thought it was strange that she'd fallen asleep on the floor of an exercise facility. "I guess I was comfy." Steve helped her to her feet and she shook her legs awake. He watched her quietly as she did this. She seemed so small for some reason. When she stood up straight, the top of her head only reach his collar bone at most. She finished waking her sleepy limbs and looked up at Steve. "I'm good to go if you are."

"Alright then. Let's start by going to some places I do know something about and then we can move on to the new areas. Does that sound good with you?"

"Yessir." Usagi nodded. She couldn't remember the last time she'd smiled so much. It had been years, it seemed. She had to admit, being in a new world was exciting for her. And that excitement was only increased by the company of the people she'd met.

The two left Stark Tower, Steve wearing jeans and a blue T-shirt with a white star on the front. Usagi thought it was kind of humorous how even when he was out of uniform he liked to adorn himself with a star. Though she didn't tell him that but just smiled and shrugged her shoulders as she concealed her laughter. They went to look at sites like the Statue of Liberty, Time Square, The Empire State Building and many other places. Usagi was impressed by the variety of cultures she saw in the streets and the sheer number of people in this city. The two could barely go a step without worrying about bumping into others. Though Steve was accustomed to the New Yorker lifestyle, it seemed. He wove through crowds pretty well for a man of his size. Usagi felt that his being a superhero could have something to do with that. She followed his path through the crowds, clinging to the back of his shirt so she wouldn't be separated from him. As they neared Central Park, where Usagi had arrived the night before, there was a break in the crowd where they took a few minutes to breathe.

"This place is full of life! It's amazing!" Her white hair moved with her exaggerated motions. She was excitedly squirming, clenching her fists and absorbing the hustle and bustle that reminded her of some of the busiest areas of Tokyo back in the day.

"It is a pretty remarkable place. People come here from all over every single day as tourists and new residents." Steve told her, sounding a bit proud of his home.

"It reminds me of where I lived as a child." Usagi leaned on the back of a bench as she admired the park in a dreamy state of mind.

"Were there a lot of people there too?" Steve stood next to her, looking on in curiosity.

"Very many! Tokyo had so many people that there were people hired to push other people into subway cars!" She laughed because she remembered it so well. She would often see people getting shoved uncomfortably into subway cars. And if the person didn't think they would fit, those pushers would surprise everyone.

"You're from Tokyo? Japan?" Steve was surprised hearing that, since she'd made it sound like she was from somewhere much further away.

"Well, I lived in the Crossroads district through my childhood. I'm not technically from there."

"I see… So, had you ever been to the US before yesterday?"

"Just once, to visit someone I knew who was studying abroad…" Her voice broke a little bit as the thought of her late husband filled her heart with pain.

"That sounds like fun." Steve either hadn't heard her falter or had chosen to ignore it for her sake. But, if he had chosen the latter, he couldn't do it for very long because he saw her body trembling as she resisted the tears that wanted to come. He slowly put an arm around her shoulders and looked her in the eyes as he spoke, making sure he wasn't causing her any extreme discomfort. "Sorry. Did I say something wrong?" His voice was filled with concern.

"Ah, no. It's just that… he's no longer…" She wasn't sure she could admit it out loud. And even if she could, what would she classify it as? She felt Mamoru lived on in her heart. But her heart hadn't felt the warmth he used to provide for so long. A tear dripped down her left cheek slowly. She could feel the salt as if it was in a wound.

Steve gave her a sad smile and then wrapped her in a friendly hug. "Shhh, I know the pain of loss. It leaves a scar on your heart and it feels like you'll never move on. But one day the numbness will eventually recede…" His kept his tone level and soft. Usagi kept her arms at her side, letting them limply hang.

As she took a few minutes to compose herself once again, Steve quietly held the mourning woman. Some people looked on curiously; some whispered and pointed to see Captain America with a woman in public. Steve was certain there were pictures taken and probably already on the internet. He wasn't sure if he liked modern technology or not sometimes. But what mattered most at this point in time was making sure his new friend was alright.

A_A_A_A_A

Clint Barton walked down the street, feeling a bit sleepy. He hadn't slept the previous night for a good reason. And he was pretty proud of himself for that reason. Though he was bummed that Natasha had been called early this morning for official SHIELD business. He decided to spend his afternoon aimlessly walking through the city streets. Most people didn't recognize him out of uniform; in fact, the only ones who seemed to know him by his real name were SHIELD, the Avengers and Jarvis. He grinned, too enchanted by his triumphant night to really care about being one of the lesser known Avengers. His daydreams were soon interrupted by a frantic crowd of people and a not-so-conspicuous explosion at the bank across the street.

_What a way to start a day!_ Clint thought to himself as he pulled out two items from his pocket. The first was a mask that he carried for such an occasion. He discreetly put it on as nobody was looking his direction. And the second item looked like a small baton at first glance, but he pushed a button and from the top and bottom, the respective limbs (upper and lower) of his bow extended from the grip. He also opened his jacket to reveal a smaller than average quiver strapped around his torso and filled with arrows that were smaller than average until he clicked a button on the shaft of the arrow. It extended in a way similar to that of the bow. He rushed to the scene as fast as he could while also being mindful of his surroundings and any vantage points he could find to get a bird's eye view of the inside of the bank.

A_A_A_A_A

The explosion could be heard for blocks. And if it wasn't, then the screams and sirens would be. Steve released Usagi from his comforting hug to look in the direction of the noise. He knew it was a bad sign and then looked back to Usagi.

"You have unique abilities too, feel like helping people today?" He asked this with intention of being sarcastic or humorous but it fell flat as he watched a police car whizzing by at the highest speed it could safely attain in streets of New York.

Usagi had been brought out of her reminiscing by the shockwave of the explosion shaking the ground and the singing of sirens. Her eyes no longer had tears, but were just a tad reddened. She noted how Steve seemed poised and ready to charge into Hell if he had to. The fire in his eyes was something to admire and she nodded. "I always feel up to helping people." She held out her right hand in front of her for a moment before her Cosmos staff materialized. Then she closed her eyes and breathed deeply. "Cosmos Power!" A kind of passion could be felt from her words. A white light surrounded her briefly. When it died down, her clothes were replaced by her sailor scout uniform and her hair was no longer down, but pulled up in the heart-shaped pigtails. On her forehead was a pale golden, eight-point star that she wore proudly.

Steve pushed a button on his watch and a hologram of his shield appeared to project itself from the clock face. He was grateful to Tony for providing this gadget. It meant he wouldn't have to carry his shield around all the time in order to use one. Though Steve did prefer the physical shield to be in his hands, he had to admit that this "hologram" or "light shield" was useful for when he didn't have his shield. He didn't know the science behind it, but this light version of his shield could hit people and objects like his other one for some reason. Tony had explained it but all the science passed over his head like a bird in the sky.

The two heroes rushed through the crowds as quickly as they could, finding no difficulty in maneuvering this time because people wanted Captain America to be able to get to the scene and were gladly staying out of their path.

A_A_A_A_A

Clint felt sweat on his brow as he learned he was down to just a few arrows in his quiver. _Five left and seven punks still standing. They know I've been whittling their forces down in number. Damn. _Clint stood on a precariously high window sill in the bank's main entrance. He'd been shooting the group of robbers down one at a time, trying to neutralize them as opposed to killing them. So most of them were pinned down with more than one arrow or had an arrow going in one side of a limb and out the other. Clint, also known as Hawkeye, had snickered as he hit one of the men in the knee. This Avenger was down to his special arrows. He'd had twenty in his small quiver and used fifteen on the first six men, all shots hitting non-lethal targets. He had two net releasing arrows, two sleeping gas arrows and one exploding left in his quiver. He reached for a net and clicked the button to bring the arrow to its full length. He notched the arrow and pulled back on the drawstring, taking aim. He released the drawstring and his shot whirred through the air, between two more men. At first, they thought he was missing his shot. Boy, were they surprised that arrow burst into a large net. The net ensnared the two men and weighed them down so that they couldn't move.

Shots from guns echoed in the large room and through the halls of the building. Clint hopped back a few steps the moment he heard a trigger being pulled back. None too soon, he'd dodged what could've ended up being a major pain in his side, literally. The glass of the window behind him burst outward around the point of impact, making jaggedly cut holes in the window. There were also knicks at the edge of the stone window sill; clearly, these guys were lousy shots.

Clint once again notched an arrow and took aim with the last net shot he had. He usually tried to save the gas arrows for the end because they were often more expensive to produce. But he eased on the drawstring slightly as he saw a familiar light shield bounce off of one of the walls and smack another of the punks in the back of the head.

"Alright, Cap, you can finish this one." The archer smirked as he lowered his bow. He replaced his arrow in the quiver and leapt for a nearby rafter. He gradually made his way to the lower level.

A_A_A_A_A

Usagi followed Steve into the bank as the man threw his light shield in the door. The shield bounced off of the far wall at an angle and whacked one of the men in the back of the head, then bounced into the air long enough for a fast-running Steve to catch it. The man fell down, unconscious. The heroes noted quickly that most of the men were either restrained or incapacitated enough to not be a threat.

Usagi's eyes found the last two men standing. They were armed and focused on Steve now, but still cautious of whoever had attacked them before. She waved her staff in their general direction and the men were suddenly suspended a few feet above the ground, struggling to move their muscles.

Steve watched the men, sure that the white-haired heroine was the one holding the men in the air with some sort of power. "What did you do?" He asked curiously as he walked toward the suspended men.

"I've restricted their muscle movements in all limbs and suspended them by lessening the effects of gravity on their bodies." Usagi explained.

"Is that even physically possible?" A remark came from Clint as he walked up to the men on the opposite side from Steve.

"It's possible. At least, for me, it is." This was her answer to this new masked man.

The man must've been giving her a skeptical look under his mask because he turned to Steve next. "Hey, Captain, who's your new friend?"

"This is Sailor Cosmos." Steve gestured toward Usagi with a free hand while his other hand held on to the light shield.

"I expect a real name later." Clint quipped before turning back to this strange woman he'd never seen or heard of before. "Hawkeye." He reached to shake her hand. She silently looked at his hand for a moment. Without a word, she nodded her head in the direction of the men still suspended in the air and then gave Clint an apologetic look.

"Sorry, this requires a lot of focus." She made a flicking motion with her staff and then the men were released and fell to the floor unconscious. They were out before they even hit the floor though. Clint and Steve were both impressed.

"What did you do this time?" Clint asked, curious about her inflicting two instant knock outs without even touching them.

"I exhausted their minds to a point of shutdown. They're just unconscious for a bit. Probably long enough for the police to get here." Usagi explained to the man, she reached out with her right hand, her staff in her left, to attempt to make up for not shaking his hand earlier.

Clint took her hand, still looking very curious, and shook it. "Exhausted their minds? But how?"

"The suspension I had them in earlier restricted their muscle movement. They kept trying to struggle and still couldn't move because I temporarily blocked the path between muscle and brain. And when I released them, their brains tried to read all the signals at once, causing a cognitive overload. Then they passed out." She told Clint her understanding of what had happened.

"Your powers are what, exactly?" Clint sounded a bit cautious and discomforted by her display.

"I can do a lot of things. I actually didn't know I could do this until just now." Usagi admitted sheepishly. "My powers are vast and I feel compelled to try new ideas…" The last bit was muttered as Steve looked at her in awe, pushing the button on his watch to make his light shield dissolve.

_Some kind of manipulation of biological functions? What in blazes? That's some pretty dangerous stuff._ Steve wasn't sure if he was more concerned about that fact that she could do that or that she had _just_ learned she was capable of it. "Isn't that dangerous to experiment with on people?" Steve asked her, his discomfort apparent.

"I guess it could be… you have a good point. I don't want to permanently damage anyone." Her face fell to a frown. She cast a glance at the floor with sad eyes. She did believe that Steve brought a good point to her attention. "Okay, I'll be more mindful of that from now on." She nodded, determined.

"You're one scary-talented chick, ain't ya?" Clint's blue eyes met hers with a touch of anticipation. "So, what can I call you when you're out of uniform?" He gestured toward her current clothing.

Usagi looked at Steve; he nodded back to her and then she looked at Clint. "My name is Usagi. I recently arrived in town and Steve's taken me in as a guest, I suppose." She told him.

"I have." Steve agreed with a smile. "Actually, Usagi, I was going to ask if you wanted to stay at the Avenger mansion while you were in town…" He scratched his blond head as he asked. Clint watched him with interest and then grinned.

"So, Usagi, you have a lot of white on. And that makes me think of angels and innocence… So I've got to ask, did it hurt when you hit the ground?"

"It did, actually. But not too horribly."She smiled at the man, bemused by his lack of a response. Then she addressed Steve to answer his inquiry. "I don't mind staying as long as you don't mind my intrusion. Bruce already mentioned something about staying there. It sounds like I can't refuse now."

Her smile was so brilliant that Steve couldn't help but flush. His cheeks warmed as he absently nodded and smiled back at her. "I'll take you to the mansion then; it's no intrusion at all."

"Seems like Cap found a lucky lady." Clint teased quietly at Steve's side so that Usagi couldn't hear him. Steve ignored his friend's comment and turned his attention to the door as police rushed in to arrest the criminals that the heroes had stopped.

A_A_A_A_A

After the bank robbery had been resolved, the two blond men, Clint's mask and bow now tucked away like they had been before, walked with Usagi, now back in her day clothes with her hair swaying loosely behind her, down the streets of Manhattan toward the Avenger mansion. They'd chatted a little on the way about themselves, mostly Clint. As they approached, Usagi marveled at the building. It was a big place! Sure, she'd once lived in a palace, but she hadn't expected to live in a place so nice ever since the destruction of her previous home.

The group walked up to the gate. Clint pushed a sequence of numbers on a keypad next to the gate and then scanned an ID when the keypad shot a light downward. Usagi caught a glimpse of the ID; it had an 'A' with an arrow going through it next to what she suspected was a picture of Clint in his full uniform. The gate opened after a computerized voice said, "Hawkeye, approved." The trio walked onto the property and the gate closed behind them.

Once in the front door, they were greeted by a woman with short, dark hair. She wore a nice yellow blouse, showing a reasonable amount of cleavage, and some red casual pants. Upon seeing a an unfamiliar face, she walked up and introduced herself. "Hey there, I'm Janet Van Dyne."

This woman smiled at Usagi in a friendly manner, so she returned the sentiment. "I'm Usagi Tsukino. Nice to meet you, Janet."

"So which of these two studs asked for your company?" Janet winked at Usagi with a coy smile replacing her initial expression.

"It's not like that…" Usagi blushed and held up her hands defensively. Her voice remained calm as she continued, "I just don't have a place to stay right now so I was invited to stay here for a bit."

"Then it must've been Steve." This woman looked at Steve like she was suggesting that she knew something he didn't want her to know.

"You know, Jan, I can be nice like the Captain too…" Clint objected to her instant assumption that Steve had extended a kind invitation.

"Uh huh." Janet nodded, making it overly obvious that she was teasing him. "On the news, I saw the live coverage outside the bank, by the way." She now looked at Usagi again. "The crew didn't actually get inside until the three of you left, but they said that some white-haired woman was managing some pretty impressive stuff."

"It was impressive!" Steve assured Janet with enthusiasm.

As the men recounted the events to Janet, Usagi saw Bruce poking his head around a doorway upon hearing voices down the hall. He waved as he approached the group, joining them at the entrance of the mansion.

"Nice to see you again." He smiled at her and nodded toward everyone else in acknowledgement of their presence. "I saw that you did some heroics this afternoon."

"Yeah. It's been quite a while since I've done something like that." She felt shy for some reason. But yet, the atmosphere of the room was welcoming.

"So you're familiar with the business of being a hero, are you?" Janet questioned Usagi with interest upon overhearing.

"I guess you could say it that way…" Usagi had never thought of saving others as a business.

After a few more minutes of chatter, Usagi was given a tour of the mansion by Steve and Janet. Clint had headed to the room he claimed as his when he was at the mansion and Bruce had returned to whatever concoction he was mixing now. Once the tour had made it through much of the mansion (about 30 minutes later), Janet mentioned leaving a man named Hank in the basement laboratory with Tony a few hours ago. She excused herself to retrieve them and figure out a plan for dinner that evening.

Usagi and Steve were left alone in one of the hallways. They silently exchanged glances until Steve thought of something to say. "Do you want to see the roof? There's a pool up there and it's a decent vantage point." He waited for her to absorb his words and nod before leading her onward. He had idly taken hold of her hand to lead. As they walked, she looked at his hand, so big and strong compared to her elegant, skinny fingers. Noticing the difference certainly had her feeling dainty.

"Steve, I want to apologize for earlier… when I kind of broke down in the park. I didn't mean to show that side of myself." Usagi told him as they arrived on the roof.

"Don't worry about it. I unintentionally brought a painful memory to your mind. If anything, I should apologize." Steve hadn't released her hand yet. At this point, she wasn't sure he had noticed that he was even holding her hand.

"No, it's been many years since he passed. I should be able to hold back my sorrow by now…"

"But you cared about him, whoever he was. Didn't you?" Steve asked with a raised brow. To this, she nodded her head. "Then it will be a long time before your scars heal… I can kind of relate to that." Steve admitted to having his own losses to cope with. He'd slowly let go of her hand and wandered to the edge of the roof to lean on the stone edges around the roof's perimeter. She looked at him, feeling guilty for causing him to think of his lost ones.

"Oh, I'm sorry! Please don't be sad… I don't want to drag you into my ditch, too!" She frantically apologized, bowing her head low. Steve smiled half-heartedly at her and chuckled.

"I don't know why, but I've been laughing and smiling a lot more since I met you last night. You have some sort of radiance about you that just makes me want to believe that everything will turn out right in the end."

Usagi felt the pink creeping into her cheeks as he spoke. "I'm the brightest shining star." She muttered.

"What?" Steve hadn't quite been able to understand her mumbling.

"It's what Mamoru used to tell me when he smiled for reason at all. I would ask him why he had such a silly grin on his face and he would tell me 'it's because you're the brightest shining star, and I get to see you every single day.'" This time she wasn't crying, she was smiling. She clearly remembered the sweet words and the sweet nights that she would spend entwined with her husband. Up until the end. Those were the best days of her life.

"Mamoru was a pretty swell guy, huh?" Steve asked, relieved that she wasn't in tears. "Was he a boyfriend?"

Usagi thought for a moment with an audible 'hmmm' escaping her. There was no harm in telling Steve the truth, right? "Mamo-chan was my husband. He, along with many of my friends and even our daughter, were killed in a devastating invasion of our home over five years ago. Only a few years after was I able to find the strength I'd forgotten I had to eliminate that evil."

Steve was flattered that she trusted him enough to tell him so much about herself. He wasn't sure what to say to her tale. But he figured that that would validate her coming here for a fresh start that she craved. "I-I'm so sorry for your loss. You've really been through a lot." He sympathized with her and really felt crummy for bringing up such a thing.

"I thought I'd lost everything at the time. But I realized that when one has nothing, one also has nothing to lose, but everything to be gained. That was when I truly obtained my power." She had continued on as if he hadn't spoken for a moment, but then she looked directly into his eyes. He felt as if she was staring at his naked soul."No need for apologies, Steve. I'm a big girl and I've accepted what happened. I don't have to like it or forget it to move on; I just need to remember the shining stars that guide me on the path of life." She smiled, thinking of her friends. Their shine had been what kept her shining so brightly.

Steve was silent as he listened to her words. She wasn't putting up a tough front. And she wasn't stuck in the tragedies of her past. She wanted to move forward with all her willpower and strength even if it would bring an occasional tear to her eye when she thought of those who were gone. She spoke with determination and he could see the fire in her eyes. "I admire your strength." He told her this plain and simple.

Before she could say anything in response to that, Clint and Janet called them from the door that led back down to the top floor of the mansion. They seemed to have agreed on something for dinner. Usagi smiled once more at Steve and then sauntered to the doorway where Janet and Clint waited for them. She grinned at the two before looking back at Steve.

He stood still for a second or two, admiring the beginning of a sunset. Then he walked over to his teammates. His friends. He grinned like Usagi did only to have Clint guffawing loudly once he saw.

The group headed down the stairs, Steve thinking to himself. _Maybe I can move on too, if I can become as strong as she is._

**End Chapter 3**

**A/N: Yeah, a little sappy. I'm full of sap! Hahaha! But seriously, if you take anything from the last scene of the chapter, it should be that strength isn't just a physical display. It's also strength of mind and strength of heart. Steve already knows this, but he sometimes feels overwhelmed in this modern society. He lingers on the past because he had no choice in getting frozen for as long as he did. Waking up to learn that everyone you cared for is gone is hard to just get used to. **

**Also, I hope anyone who caught on to it appreciated the Skyrim reference I made when Hawkeye was kicking butt. If you didn't catch it… too bad for you. You won't get the cheap chuckle from this overused joke. Anyway, please let me know what you thought of the chapter. I felt that Steve deserved to know about her baggage at this point. She'll get to know his sorrows soon enough. Meanwhile, she'll become acquainted with more Avengers. Eventually. Btw, it's 3am right now so you should all feel pretty special. This is the second night in a row that I've stayed up this late to type for this story. Later!**


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Steve sat on the couch in the main living room of the Avenger mansion. He went over what Usagi had told him in his head. Her past, her sorrows. He did truly admire her courage. As he silently pondered, Tony snuck up behind him, leaning on the back of the couch.

"You look thoughtful." Tony spoke up. His sudden words startled the captain out of his focus.

"Oh, Tony." Steve breathed easy after seeing that his friend was the only once invading the silence. "I'm just thinking about—"

"Usagi?" Tony interjected. "I know I am. She's very interesting. Very sexy, too." The billionaire smiled to himself.

"That's not exactly what I was going to say…"

"Oh. What _were_ you going to say?" Tony asked, less interested but still asking anyway.

"Before dinner, we were talking. She's been through a lot and looking for a new start." Steve leaned back on the couch, looking at Tony. He had a question on his mind, and Tony could see that. He even believed he knew exactly what Steve was going to say.

"I'll see what I can do about getting her a card to get into the mansion. Also, her hero name is Cosmos, right?" Tony stood up straight, fixed his suit and flashed a grin. He'd also seen the news that afternoon regarding the foiling of the bank robbery. And she also heard Clint and Steve tell their sides of the story. He knew she had abilities that could very well be beneficial to their team.

"_Sailor_ Cosmos, I believe."

"Eh, adding 'Sailor' to the front makes it sound old timey." Tony wrinkled his nose when he said this.

"Is there anything wrong with that?" Steve raised an eyebrow at Tony's words. He was pretty old timey, by Tony's standards. Tony feigned a slight shuffling of his feet in his avoidance of Steve's suspicious eyes.

"Not at all. I'm headed back to Stark Tower. Goodnight, Cap." Tony rolled his eyes and waltzed out of the room, smirking and waving a hand over his shoulder.

"Goodnight." Steve shook his head, smiling, and rose from the couch to head to bed. He walked down the hallway, toward his room.

A_A_A_A_A

Usagi was lying down in her bed for the night. She thought of this new world. The people in this mansion, these _Avengers_. They seemed like a good bunch of people. She still hadn't met T'Challa, Tony had told her at dinner earlier. Apparently he was an important diplomat from a place called Wakanda, and he'd had some business to tend to at the embassy. Clint had added that Natasha was also away on business. And while mentioning absent Avengers, Janet brought attention to Thor's lack of presence too.

Janet had introduced her to Hank there as well. He was very studious and knowledgeable in the science department. He'd asked her all sorts of questions about her powers, her origins and much more. She'd only answered a few of the more general questions, much to his disappointment. Bruce had sat on one side of her during the dinner, quietly smiling and occasionally offering his thoughts on the conversations going on. Steve had taken the seat on her other side, doing little more than Bruce, but with a little more driving of the conversations. Clint, Tony and Janet, however, had been the most talkative of the group.

She giggled as she remembered the interactions between the dynamic heroes. She had a feeling that she would get along with them well. And while she had only told Steve of her losses and her reasons for wanting to start fresh, she knew she would tell the others, too, one day.

She leaned back, sinking into her pillows and her mattress, burying herself in her sheets. Janet had lent her pajamas, consisting of pink shorts and a black camisole. That way, the summer heat wouldn't be overbearing while she tried to sleep. Rolling to one side, she closed her eyes. She felt that she would again find happiness here.

_I think I can get used to this life. Saving lives of those who can't protect themselves, working alongside these new friends… It seems I've found something to give me purpose again. I do not just exist as I did anymore. It's weird to think that way, but I feel much better now. Even having thought of Mamo-chan…_ A tear rolled down her cheek, caressing her face until it absorbed into the pillow she rested on. She felt as if the tear was the first of many that would be shed that night. She was right. She cried many tears as if she was releasing her entire life up to this point. All her sorrows, all her doubts, every moment where she questioned her existence after losing those most important… she felt the wounds finally closing to form scars. The thing about scars is that, while they never go away completely, they are healed wounds.

As timely as ever, a light knock sounded on the door to her room. Usagi sniffled a bit and gave herself a moment before speaking. "Who's there?"

"Jarvis, Miss. I thought you might want some tea." The voice spoke clearly on the other side of the door.

"Ah, that sounds nice. Come on in." Usagi replied, trying hard to keep her voice from breaking. She wasn't doing very well. The door opened in response to her answer.

"Sorry to bother you at this hour," Jarvis began, "But I recalled you mentioning at dinner that you enjoy tea. I made some for myself and thought you may want some as well." The polite, older man floated in the room balancing a tray with two tea cups, two small spoons and a small sugar bowl.

"Oh, I did say that, didn't I?" Usagi tried to smile at Jarvis. She did appreciate the gesture but she could still barely keep her tears from falling in front of this kind butler.

Jarvis put the tray down gingerly on the side table by the bed and then turned to look at her. His face flashed a look of surprise and then concern once he saw the redness in her eyes. "Miss Usagi, are you well?"

"I, um…" She tried to hide her face by looking down at the bed sheets. "I'm alright for now. I was just thinking…"

Jarvis considered her words for a moment before smiling and putting a few spoonfuls of sugar in his own tea. "How many spoons of sugar would you like?" He had decided not to inquire further because she clearly wasn't ready to discuss what was causing her distress. At least, not with him. And he was okay with that. He wouldn't force it out of her unless that became necessary.

"Four, please." She said this in an almost embarrassed fashion. She'd always loved sweets.

"I see you like your tea sweet." Jarvis chuckled as he used the second spoon to put the sugar in her tea cup. The tea was still warm, she could see, as the steam rose slowly from the tea cup. He put the spoon in the cup and offered it to her so that she could stir it herself. As he held it for her to take, the smell wafted to her nose. Green tea. She closed her eyes and took in the smell. She breathed it in deeply and sighed as she released her breath.

"I do…" She nodded, taking the tea cup and idly reaching for the spoon to stir the sugar into the mix. "Jarvis, you aren't going to ask about what's bothering me?" She had thought him to be the type to ask.

"While I am concerned, I respect others' privacy. If you don't want to talk about your troubles and you don't seem completely broken then I won't press for details. Though, if you want to talk about it, I'm willing to listen. Mr. Stark is similar in that way. He doesn't like to talk about… what did he call it last time? Ah, yes, 'touchy feely emotional issues' is what he said." The butler shook his head at the memories of Tony avoiding his concern in the past.

"Oh." Usagi nodded and looked at Jarvis. This old gentleman was amusing. And, while he said he wouldn't press for information, she felt he was doing a great job of cheering her up with his simple words and a cup of tea.

A_A_A_A_A

The former queen and the butler talked until both had finished their tea. Usagi hadn't told him her sorrows, but she had told him about her home world. He seemed dazzled by the description of the gardens at her home prior to the mansion. He had inquired about whether or not she had any photos of them. Sadly, she told him that she did not, for everything had been destroyed. She did think that one day there might be more flowers put there. It seemed like something the citizens of Crystal Tokyo would do for when she would return.

Jarvis left the room just as quietly and elegantly as he'd walked in, closing the door behind him. Usagi felt a little better than before and soon drifted off into a sleep.

A_A_A_A_A

_She was hot, burning. The heat was intense as she looked on at the cityscape in front of her. She stood in mid air, it seemed. She wasn't on a physical cliff, but the view was as if she stood on a distant, high vantage point. She saw the whole city in flames. Crystal Tokyo was burning to the ground. She could hear the far-off screams and see silhouettes the size of ants running around frantically. _

_Her friends, the scouts, stood around her, but soon disappeared…_

_She turned away from the city and it all vanished. Now she stood in a white void. Everything was white. Nothing was white. She didn't know where the two were divided, or even if they really were. She felt her head getting fuzzy and her mind became numb. _

_The white void vanished now. She now stood in the sky, suspended, above New York City. She looked down at the city in silent awe. Her awe soon turned to terror as it suddenly erupted into flames just like her home. She dove from the sky and into the flames that burned high. It wouldn't happen again. _

_She sped through the flames as fast as she could! At first, she was alone, but then the Avengers suddenly appeared around her, those who flew were flying and those who ran were running. They all seemed to be ignoring the flames as they pushed on, a single thought shared between all of them: save as many lives as possible._

A_A_A_A_A

A rhythmic knock on her door could be heard as she opened her eyes. It was morning, she could tell from the amount of sun shining in her window. She sat up slowly and mumbled to herself, something about wondering what time it was. As she walked to the door, she almost stumbled because she was still feeling the grasp that the sandman had on her eyelids. Usagi turned the doorknob and opened the door just wide enough to stick her face in the gap.

"Usagi! Suit up! We've got a situation!" It was Janet who was at her door. The urgency in her voice seemed to wake the sleepy guardian amply enough to think more clearly. Janet was wearing a snug one-piece uniform with black and yellow stripes and some sort of headpiece that reminded Usagi of antennas.

"Right." Usagi nodded, opening the door all the way so that she could run out. She held out her hand and her Cosmos staff appeared. She took hold of it, "Cosmos power!" Her borrowed pajamas were replaced with her striking, mostly white uniform. He white hair went back into the heart-shaped pigtails and the gold eight-pointed star appeared in the middle of her forehead.

"Wow, nice look." Jan piped up before the two exchanged glances and dashed through the halls, to the entrance of the mansion. There, they met up with Clint, Steve, Hank and Bruce. Each was in their respective uniform except for Bruce. Though he was shuddering a bit here and there. The others weren't overly concerned though, so Usagi cautiously ran on with the others at her side. Bruce assured them he would catch up soon and stayed behind.

"So, what's the situation?" Usagi asked the others after clearing the gate in front of the mansion. All glances fell on the Captain. Steve acknowledged this and spoke evenly as they ran.

"According to what Nick told me in his message, we're facing a group of super villains who recently broke out of prison. Three total and each one is dangerous."

"Did he mention names?" Clint asked, wondering if he'd faced these enemies before.

"He did, but I've never heard of them. Apparently they were caught by SHIELD forces a while ago. So they haven't been approached by the Avengers before." Steve recalled the message details clearly enough to relay them to the others.

"Well, I guess I'll find out if I recognize them later." Clint mumbled.

The team ran on until they reached the area that the villains were in. Usagi knew it was the right place because of the explosion that went off as they arrived. The rumbling echoed in between the buildings. The streets had become crumbled pieces of cement and any cars parked on the side of the street were either crushed or cast aside onto the sidewalk. All the people who had been nearby had likely fled or gotten hurt in the ambush. The heroes paused for a moment to absorb the wreckage.

"Iron Man, Wasp, you two fly overhead and search for anyone who may need help. Hawkeye, find a high point and take out any enemies you can see. Ant Man, Usagi, you two come with me. We'll patrol the ground area." Steve was quick to give orders. Usagi was impressed to say the least. And everyone nodded and did as instructed. She supposed he really was a captain in rank.

The trio went forward as the others split off. The damage was great in the street in front of them. The pavement was completely in shambles in some places and not touched in others. Cars were crushed here and there. Papers were scattered around and there were piles of debris from buildings that had suffered. A light film of smoke rose from some of the damaged cars and mixed with the dusty air.

"Do we know what these guys look like at all? Stature? Clothing? Anything?" Hank asked Steve without turning to look at him, keeping his attention on his surroundings.

"Nick said they were tough. That's all I know. Just look for the ones causing havoc." Steve's words sounded more thoughtful than instructional this time.

Usagi felt a presence watching them from atop a pile of debris and paused a moment, staff at the ready. She looked up. Steve and Hank noticed her pause and followed her gaze. They were looking at a man in a completely black body suit with a mask that had feline-esque ears.

"Panther, you came to check it out too!" Hank sounded pleasantly surprised to see this man. Usagi lowered her staff when she saw this. "I thought you were busy at the embassy?"

"Finished early and decided this would be a productive way to spend my time." The man's tone was pleasant enough. Though he had an accent that Usagi had never heard before. The man lithely pounced from his perch upon the debris and landed at the street level with his comrades. "I see you've a new friend." This Panther extended a hand toward Usagi, "My name is T'Challa, also the Black Panther."

"I'm Usagi, also Sailor Cosmos." She shook his hand briefly.

"Panther," Steve addressed him urgently, "Have you seen the ones responsible for this mess?"

"I arrived not too long before you. I have not seen them or any sign of them. However, I know an ambulance is nearby along with police support and firefighters. The only ones that seem to be missing from this is the cause." T'Challa gave his report to Steve abruptly when asked.

"Maybe they left after setting off the explosives?" Hank pondered aloud.

"Why would they do that?" Steve wondered.

"Perhaps to make some sort of statement?" T'Challa guessed.

Usagi watched the men converse and strategize for a good two minutes. The group was then back on their toes and searching the entirety of the destruction. The group happened upon an ambulance and some police officers, all were baffled and none knew where the villains had gone. One of the medics claimed to have seen them leaving the area by splitting up in three different directions. Clearly, this did not make it easy for the Avengers or the police to follow.

A_A_A_A_A

Tony looked every direction he could, not seeing any signs of movement. _Damn, not seeing anything here. Come on, where are the guys responsible for this mess?_ His eyes continued to scan the area. His suit also scanned the area. Oddly enough, something did show up on the radar. But this was just one massive life form. He'd seen it before, many times in fact. Tony smirked and gently touched down on the ground. The faceplate on his helmet went up as he greeted a large green man with purple shorts.

"Big Green, you made it to the party, I see."

There was no response from the Hulk aside from a roll of the eyes and a grunt.

"Yeah, yeah, I know you don't like having new friends see you like that… Whatever floats your boat. Have you seen any sign of the guys behind all this?" Tony thought it was better not to make a wisecrack about how Bruce had a soft spot for the new girl on the team. At least not while the Hulk was out.

"No sign but this." Hulk kept his answer concise as he picked up a piece of paper he held in his gargantuan hand.

Tony walked up next to his teammate and took a look at the paper. After a few moments of reading what was written on it, he sighed. "This is good enough for now. This means there's something a bit more interesting going on…" He paused, looking up at the Hulk towering over him. "Mind if I take this back to the team. I imagine you want to calm down a bit before you go back to the mansion." Tony took the paper from him slowly and cautiously.

"…Yeah." Hulk said and sprang into the air. He couldn't fly, but, man oh man, he could jump high! The Hulk was soon out of sight and Tony replaced the faceplate of his helmet. He started flying back toward the others.

A_A_A_A_A

Once Cap's group was reassured that the situation was manageable and many people were okay, they regrouped with Iron Man, Wasp and Hawkeye. Steve told them what they'd heard and received their own reports. Tony handed Steve a piece of paper. It was a small slip of paper, folded precisely in half with small scrawling on it.

"I found this in the street; I figured you would want to see it." Tony sounded a bit bothered.

"A paper?" Usagi asked, trying to peek over Steve's shoulder on her tiptoes with no luck. "What's it say?"

The Captain took a moment to breathe in and out before reading the note out loud.

"_Avengers,_

_Unfortunately, we had a previous engagement and you were so late to the scene that you missed us. The three of us look forward to having more fun with you at a later point in time. _

_Best of luck!_

_Black, White and Red"_

"Is that it?" Jan asked indignantly. "So they're just jerks out to have fun hurting people?"

"That's worrisome." Clint put a hand on his chin in a thoughtful manner.

"It is." T'Challa nodded his agreement. "They planned on our arrival."

"And they are gutsy enough to outright challenge us." Tony noted. "They'll live to regret that."

"So what do we do now?" Usagi asked the obvious question. The others were quiet for a moment as they thought.

Breaking the silence, Hank spoke up. "I think, for now, we should go back to the mansion and think of a way to figure out who Black, White and Red are. I can analyze the note and someone can contact Fury and ask if he knows anything about the trio now that we have names to go on."

"Sounds like a start." Steve agreed. "We'll do that. I'll get a hold of Fury as soon as we get back." He paused a moment and looked at a storefront nearby with digital clocks in the display. "It's still early; everyone should rest a little bit before we make a move on these punks."

A_A_A_A_A

The group returned to the mansion, Clint plopped down on the nearest couch once he got through the doorway. Jan dropped into a chair next to the couch. Hank rushed to his lab to analyze what he could on the paper; DNA would be nice to find. T'Challa joined Hank. Tony joined Jan and Clint in sitting down once his Iron Man suit was removed and put back into his portable briefcase. Usagi was bewildered watching the way the suit was put away. Lots of rotating and folding of the metal.

Steve wasted no time calling up Nick Fury and telling him what had happened. While that went on, Usagi looked around.

"Bruce never caught up to us?" She asked upon noticing that he wasn't with them and she hadn't seen him at the scene at all. She stood up near the furniture her teammates relaxed on.

"Oh, he did. He just, uh… tends to work in a more solo fashion. He left the scene after not finding anyone to smash." Tony replied to the questioning tone Usagi had used.

"He's just a big ball of mental conflict sometimes…" Clint used the only words he could think of the try and explain what Tony meant to Usagi.

"What do you mean?" She didn't think that sounded right. Bruce seemed really nice and gentle. She thought it was bit strange that they were talking about him like that. He seemed pretty stable to her.

"Usagi, Bruce is part of the team because he has a unique ability, just like we all do. And being in the Avengers beats SHIELD catching him or the military trying to kill him. His ability is to basically turn into a giant green monster with an absurd amount of strength. He gets a little sensitive about it though because he can't always control it."Jan said this with a few pauses so she could think about what she would say.

"And he worries about scaring new team members." Tony winked at Usagi. She took a moment to absorb this. She blushed lightly, a little flattered that Bruce was worried about scaring her. She was almost frowning at the thought.

"He doesn't have to worry about that. I've had a fair share of experiences and I'm sure he can't be scarier than some of the things I've seen…"

"Oh?" Tony inquired, curious about what she'd seen that could make seeing the Hulk on a rampage seem less terrifying.

Just then, Steve had finished reporting to Nick via cell phone. He walked into the sitting area and sighed as he sat next to Tony. "Well, team, all we can do right now is to wait for results or another attack. Nick is having a few agents look into this to assist us. Meanwhile, he's sending footage to us taken from traffic cameras and security cameras that were within the range of the destruction."

The change of topic suited Usagi fine; it seemed Steve had good timing. She watched him. He seemed a bit stressed out knowing that the villains had gotten away and he couldn't pursue them right away. The others also picked up on his discomfort.

"Simmer down, Cap. We've done what we can for now and the emergency services have the catastrophe under control at the moment. Once the assholes rear their ugly mugs, we'll get 'em." Clint assured the man as he stretched his arms above his head and yawned. It was about six in the morning and he was still sleepy.

"I know. I just get restless in situations like this." Steve rested his arms on his knees and hunched over, staring at the floor and fidgeting. Usagi had to admit that it was amusing to watch him. She knew the situation itself was not funny in least but Steve's way of worrying over it made her smile. He was flustered and she walked over to him and put a hand on one of his strong shoulders.

"Steve…" She said his name with a kind tone.

"Hm?" He looked up at her from where he sat.

"How about a nap? The most you can do right now is to be ready when you're needed. And it's hard to be ready for anything when you haven't gotten enough sleep." She smiled. She was sad to admit to herself that she'd just sounded more like a mother than a fellow hero of justice. Her cheeks warmed upon realizing this.

Everyone around the two started chuckling at her words. Her faced burned more fiercely when she heard them. Steve let out a brief chuckle as well before smiling and nodding. "Alright. I'll get some rest."

"Wow, the mighty Captain America has been convinced to rest by the new girl!" Jan exclaimed, still trying to hold back her laughter. She and Clint weren't having much luck in restraining themselves. Tony, on the other hand, was fishing something out of his pocket.

"Usagi-chan, I almost forgot to give this to you. But since you've earned it by telling him to take a nap, here you go." He pulled his hand from his jacket pocket and presented her with a card. She took it and stared at it for a moment. Her blue eyes scanned the words. Her hero name was written neatly next to a picture of her in her uniform. There were a few signatures from government officials and other bits of information like date of acceptance and type of clearance listed below. She looked at the card for a moment.

"Cosmos, trial member of Avengers, security clearance level: TBD… What's this?" Usagi read a bit, mumbling, before looking at Tony.

"I managed to get this done overnight. The president and a few other big wigs saw you on the news and I was able to convince them for a trial period in the Avengers. They figured as long as Captain America trusts you, it might be okay to let you into our gang officially."

"So, I'm a member of the Avengers now?" She smiled a hopeful smile around the room.

"Well, just a _trial_ member right now. Until they decide whether or not they think you're a good add-on to us." Tony shrugged. "Apparently, my word isn't convincing enough for a full membership. But they said that if you're approved after close observation and an in-depth interview with SHIELD, they'll give you consideration."

"Oh." Usagi tilted her head slightly. The application process of being a hero in this world seemed very different than she remembered it being in her world. Usually, someone would just go out and, well, _be a hero. _

"Hey, that means you get to stay with us for a while! It's good news!" Jan hopped up from the couch and threw her arms up into to the air.

"If I get to stay for a while, it is good." Usagi's smile grew as she de-materialized her card into her space-time pocket. The others were still not used to it but knew of her ability to do so.

She would get to be around this group for as long as she took to get full approval to join. She hoped that wouldn't be too long of a wait. Just some observation and questioning, right? Another step closer to finding a new purpose. Though, she figured that even if she wasn't an official member, she would stay with them and do what she could to help people who couldn't help themselves.

She turned her attention to Steve and saw his grin. He was also happy with this news. Their eyes stayed on one another for a few long seconds before Steve stood up and put gentle hand on top of her head.

"Welcome to the team, Usagi."

**A/N: I hope you all liked that chapter! I edited it the morning after posting it. Mostly just rewording a few things and catching a few typos. I might have still missed something… Whatevs. Love you guys for staying with me over my brief "Homework! School!" mode. I've been busy lately and that's why I haven't been able to post so much. But next week is finals and all I really have left to do is color storyboard panels and finish a 3D model of Bender from Futurama. So I'll certainly have time before next weekend. Meanwhile, please keep reading and reviewing. Love you guys! **


	6. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Usagi was hovering about ten feet off the ground as she reached for a cat lounging on a branch. "Here, kitty." She said this quietly in as convincing a manner as possible toward the cat. It was a black cat with dark eyes staring at her. Usagi smiled at the cat and suddenly the cat hopped from the branch, toward the white-haired girl. Usagi caught the little fur ball easily and then began a slow descent to the grass below, her braided hair only moving with her.

"Thank you for helping my kitty!" a small girl with black pigtails took hold of the cat. The girl's mother, looking like an older version of her daughter, stepped toward Usagi with a big smile on her face.

"Thank you so much, Cosmos. We're lucky you were walking by." The woman momentarily placed a hand gently on Usagi's shoulder in a gesture of gratitude.

"It's no trouble, Ma'am. I used to have a little kitty of my own." Usagi smiled back as the woman and slowly reached toward the cat in the little girl's arms and scratched under its chin. A light purr escaped the feline's mouth.

After another thank you from both the mother and daughter, they walked on to wherever they were going. Usagi stood behind them, watching them go. She then grinned to herself. _What a nice way to start my day. _She hadn't been wearing her uniform but the ladies had recognized her anyway. The long white hair likely had a lot to do with it.

Usagi brushed off her white skorts and pink blouse and picked up a bag from the ground with "Alph's Bakery" written on it. She'd gotten up early to get a treat for the team when she ran into the girl and the mother. She hurried back toward the mansion. She'd specifically asked Jarvis not to make breakfast today so she could get pastries for the others. Jarvis didn't make breakfast everyday but he did often. And when he didn't, everyone would think of something to do.

As she came to the gate, she scanned her card and the gate opened. She kept moving at a quick pace up to the door. At least a couple of the others would be awake by now and wondering what to do for breakfast. It had been a few days since the city had been attacked by Red, Black and White and she'd adjusted a bit more to the routines of her new friends. Steve always rose early and worked out. Sometimes he ate before and sometimes after. Clint would sleep in as late as he could and would go straight to the kitchen when he woke up. Bruce often stayed up late and he would either be awake because he'd never gone to sleep or because he'd just woken up early. He often forgot to eat when he was in the lab. Hank more or less had the same habit as Bruce, but he was nagged by Jan until he listened. Jan woke up at a reasonable hour and got breakfast and sometimes added a morning exercise session. T'Challa stayed at the embassy and came over when he could to discuss matters with the team. Tony stayed at his own home, coming over every day after his meetings and business to see if any progress had been made in finding the trio responsible for the wreckage downtown.

"Oh, what's in the bag?" Clint asked from a stool at the counter adjacent to the kitchen as he saw Usagi walk into the room. He leaned forward eagerly as he sniffed at the air, picking up a scent of cinnamon. "Smells like cinnamon rolls!"

"Good guess, Clint." Usagi placed the bag on the counter and took a pastry box out of it. "I thought I'd get something nice for you all. Are the others here?" She looked around briefly.

"Jan is in the shower, I think. The science nerds are examining something. Hank seems to think that they have some sort of important discovery." Clint shrugged as he stood and inched closer to the baked goods. Upon Usagi's curious eyes staying on him, he added, "Steve's in the training room."

Jarvis walked in silently and began putting out plates to put the pastries on. Usagi noticed and smiled at him gratefully, then turned back to Clint. "Well, I'll take a cinnamon roll to Steve. Would you mind taking some to Hank and Bruce?"

"Not particularly. I'd rather eat theirs myself…"

"Clint…"

"Okay. But just because you're trying to do something sweet for us." Clint winked at her and then grabbed two plates with cinnamon rolls on them. He sauntered out of the room quickly so he could return to his own breakfast ASAP.

"I'll take one to Miss Van Dyne as well." Jarvis volunteered as he lifted another plate gingerly.

"Alright… but don't forget that you get one too, Jarvis." Usagi waved a finger at him before reaching for two plates. One was hers and the other would be Steve's.

"Of course, Miss Usagi." Jarvis smiled at the kind woman. He knew she was trying to remind him to relax for once. She'd mentioned the other day that he was too good at tending to the needs of others and should take a personal day once in a while. The whole conversation had caused Jarvis to laugh; she'd pouted at him for laughing though he reassured her that he was only amused because he didn't hear those words much.

A_A_A_A_A

Steve sat down on the floor, his chiseled back against the wall. He'd finished his morning workout and took a moment to stretch a little bit. While he wasn't tired, he was coated in sweat. He began dabbing it off with his towel, removing his white T-shirt and tossing it to the floor. He'd dried his body of sweat considerably by the time he heard the door to the room open. He looked up instinctively to see Usagi walking in carrying two plates.

"Good morning, Steve." Usagi sounded cheery as she walked over to him. She noticed he was shirtless and caught the scent of sweat. It wasn't terrible BO but sort of a strange sweet smell. She ignored it and knelt down in front of him offering one of the plates.

Steve looked at the plate for a moment and then took it happily. "Good morning to you too. Thanks for the food." He grabbed the fork resting on the side of his plate and stuck it into his cinnamon roll. He took hearty bites of his food.

"Gosh, you might need a second one… There's more in the kitchen if you're still hungry when you finish. I'm guessing you definitely will be." Usagi giggled at his appetite. She remembered him mentioning how fast his metabolism burned up energy in the past few days. He would certainly need seconds or thirds.

Between bites, the Captain blushed a bit at her observation of his appetite. "Thanks for thinking of that, I guess. Er, so you woke up early this morning just to get cinnamon rolls?"

"I did. I wanted to get a treat for the team. You've all been so kind to me the past few days. I'm grateful and I thought fresh cinnamon rolls from the bakery down the street were an acceptable way to say that." She looked at her own plate and lifted her fork to begin munching her breakfast.

"They are acceptable." Steve agreed with a humorous tone. He found her wording funny. "It's a very nice sentiment." He took a big bite after saying this.

She smiled and watched him. Her eyes slowly and unintentionally focused on his exposed torso after a few seconds. She blushed as she stared. He was so focused on eating that he wasn't paying attention. She nibbled on her food as she continued to stare. _His body… is incredibly sexy. Oh, wow. _ She knew her cheeks were getting red from the heat she felt on her face.

"Hey, Steve…" Usagi mumbled to get his attention. He looked up from his cinnamon roll with questioning eyes and saw her reddened cheeks.

"Yes?" He asked, making sure he swallowed the food before speaking.

"Ah, well… I… er… you are very… _built_, aren't you?" She was avoiding eye contact with him on purpose, it seemed. He suddenly felt self-conscious upon realizing that he was shirtless in front of a young woman.

"Oh, sorry! I can put my shirt back on-!" His own cheeks were turning pink and he felt the heat resonate from his face as well as his ears. He put his now empty plate down and scrambled for his shirt, but Usagi's words stopped him.

"Oh, you don't have to. Sorry for embarrassing you. It's just hard not to notice." She was still blushing a great deal.

"It's not… inappropriate to you… is it?" He watched her body language. She was very shy at the moment, her shoulders shrugged as her gaze turned toward the floor and her knees came up to act like a table for her plate.

"I wouldn't go as far as to say 'inappropriate', just impressive is all. I didn't know a human body was capable of such… remarkable physique." She muttered. She allowed herself a glance up at Steve's face and saw the lingering redness on his face.

"It's because of the serum, actually. I volunteered to be a test subject for a special serum when I joined the military about 70 years ago. It worked and the result was this body."

"Really? You're over 70 years old?"

"Well, technically. I was frozen until a short while ago." Steve's embarrassment was gone as his tone sounded a bit hollow. He almost sounded like he was remembering something sad.

"Frozen?" Usagi took a chance on learning more by questioning him.

"Yeah. You see, after the serum worked and I went through a lot of specialized training, I joined the war. I had a lot of successful campaigns. Took down a lot of people looking to hurt others. My final mission… the one that led to me getting frozen, I lost my best friend. He had been at my side the whole time and we were trying to stop a bomber from hitting our country… He didn't make it. I fell into icy waters and was frozen. A little less than a year ago, I was found and defrosted. Since then, I've been trying to get used to this time and I found a place among the Avengers."

Usagi listened to his story, hanging on his words with as much attention as she could. She found his story touching. She reached to him and put a soft hand on one of his broad shoulders. He looked her in the eyes and saw them glistening. She smiled at him warmly and he felt a light tingle in his stomach.

"It seems we both needed a fresh start."

Steve nodded at her words and smiled back. He took this opportunity to put his own hand on the shoulder of the arm she had extended toward him. He used what leverage he had from the positions they were in to pull her closer, touching his forehead to hers.

"Thanks for listening. Sorry to be such a downer this early in the morning."

Usagi squeaked upon his sudden closeness to her face. She could feel his breath in the few seconds of silence she took to come up with any sort of response. His breathing was steady and warm against her skin. "It wasn't that much of a downer. I'm interested in you… your _past_, that is." Her voice betrayed her by speaking with a pitch that was a few notches higher than usual.

Steve closed his eyes a moment as he remained close to her. He felt her breathing speed up just ever-so-slightly and could almost hear her heartbeat. He had to admit, he hadn't been this close to many women in his life but he liked it. Her frame was delicate and her scent was amazing. He wondered if it was just pheromones or if she had a special shampoo that smelled good. He opened his eyes and pulled his face away from hers. Her blue eyes were fluttering wide and her long lashes brushed the air where he had been moments earlier. She stared at him, not sure what to do or say. Steve wasn't even sure if she was able to articulate anything at the moment.

"Sorry for invading your space bubble." He grinned at her awkwardness.

"Ah, no… it's… that is." She stumbled over her words, speaking very quickly. She then caught herself and paused, taking a breath. "I didn't mind the invasion; I was simply caught off guard."

"Are you going to finish your cinnamon roll?" Steve asked her, seeing the plate she had put down at some point during their silence.

"Ah, yes!" Usagi immediately jumped at the chance to shift the focus. She grabbed her plate and continued to gobble her breakfast with gusto. Steve stifled a chuckled and stood up, picking his shirt off of the floor and draping it over his shoulder. He excused himself to the shower and Usagi nodded with hamster cheeks full of cinnamon roll.

Once he left the room, she finished devouring her food. As she swallowed the last bite of breakfast, she put her plate on top of Steve's cleared plate. Her hand went to her forehead and she contemplated for a bit. _That was... breathtaking. It's been so long since I've felt that kind of nervous fluttering in my gut. Dammit, he is too attractive for his own good. Everything about him is attractive. That was… intoxicating. _Her face warmed again as she smiled at the thought of him being so close. She wasn't sure how she felt about him yet but she knew she was physically attracted to him.

She stood up, grabbing the dishes, and headed to the kitchen once more. Jarvis was sitting in a stool next to Clint, who was reading the newspaper (the comics, of course!). Jan was leaning on a nearby wall, sipping some orange juice from a glass.

"There you are! We wondered if you decided to eat in your room or something." Jan looked up from her glass toward Usagi.

Usagi opened the dishwasher and slid the two plates into it as she spoke to Jan. "Oh, I ate with Steve in the gym. He'll probably be in the kitchen soon to grab more food." She tried her hardest to not show indications of embarrassment.

"Yeah. The guys in the group tend to eat quite a bit when they actually remember to." Jan laughed. She pushed off of the wall after gulping down the rest of her OJ. She walked toward the newest Avenger with a big, bright smile. "On another topic, Usagi, I think we should spend our downtime today with some bonding!"

"Bonding?" Usagi questioned. She knew what it meant but she wasn't sure what the bonding activities would be when Jan was involved. The question was written in her expression.

"Girls' day in town. Shopping, salon, spa… those types of things." Jan still smiled.

"That sounds fun but I don't have much money on me. And what I have probably isn't usable here in New York." Usagi thought it sounded amazing in reality but she hadn't brought much money with her when she left her home.

"No worries. It's on me today." Jan put down her glass on the counter and pointed at herself with her thumb, a big grin on her face.

"Really, Jan?" Usagi was incredibly surprised, not to mention grateful for the invitation. And she figured that it would be rude of her to refuse Jan's offer. As Jan nodded in response, Usagi got a big, bright smile. She then squealed excitedly, surprising Jan and Clint. She hugged Jan enthusiastically. "Oh, thank you, Jan!"

"Really, it's no trouble at all…" Jan didn't know what else to say. She was a tad bit shocked by the excited squealing and hugging but she figured it was a good reaction. "Are you ready to head off then? Our appointment is in about three hours and I think we can get some good shopping in before then." She pulled back from her friend's embrace after briefly returning the affection with her own hug. Usagi nodded eagerly and excused herself to freshen up a bit before going out.

On the way to the powder room, Usagi saw Steve heading toward the kitchen, likely going to get more food. "Hey!" Her tone fluctuated in a musical way as she greeted the Captain.

"Ah, hey again. You seem very chipper." Steve was all cleaned up now, dressed casually in jeans and a simple button-up forest green shirt of which he rolled the long sleeves up. He smiled at the woman warmly as he noticed the skip in her step.

"Oh, yes!" Usagi agreed that she felt very chipper. "Jan invited me for a girls' day in the city. I'm pretty excited!" She was not even trying to conceal her eagerness to do something girly and fun.

"That sounds like fun." Steve was amused. He chuckled at the obvious excitement. He approached her and patted the top of her head gently. "Have a great time. I hope you ladies have a blast."

Usagi paused in her eager squirming around to look up at Steve. He was so tall and, even though he was wearing a shirt now, she could still tell that he was strongly built. He must stand roughly a foot taller than her. His hand was even considerably larger than hers, she knew, as she felt it resting on her head.

Steve looked down into her blues eyes with his own and then noticed that she had a strand of hair falling awkwardly in front of one of her ears. He moved his hand to take a moment to tuck the strand behind her ear and then allowed his hand to rest over the side of her face. "Your hair got messy during the happy skipping, it seems…" Steve realized he was being very bold and caught himself feeling shy all of a sudden. He removed his hand from her face and shoved both of his hands into his pant pockets. "I'll let you go now… Have fun." He tried to smile but it came out looking more like he felt he did something wrong.

Usagi blushed and nodded. "Yes, of course. Um, you have a good day too." She then hustled, after a super quick salute, toward the powder room. _What was that all about?_

A_A_A_A_A

The ladies had scored big time at many of the clothing stores, according to Jan. Usagi felt that everything had been far too expensive but Jan assured her that the prices were very good considering the brands, location, etc. Once the ladies made it to the spa, checked in and got all their purchases and bags safely tucked away behind the counter, they went and changed into the spa's robes. The robes were very plush and cotton candy pink. From there, they had special treatments lined up. Massages, facials, manicures and pedicures. Jan had only ordered the basic package since she wasn't sure how comfortable Usagi was at spas.

Usagi honestly felt spoiled by all this. Even when she'd been a queen, she'd hardly ever done something so relaxing. After the massages and mani/pedi, the ladies were lead to some large luxurious seats for facials. They were reclined back by the spa specialist and they chatted happily about every little thing. They talked about clothes, food, life and the unavoidable topic of men. Of course, Jan had been the one to bring it up.

"So, Usagi, I've been wondering… do you have a man back where you're from?" Jan asked as she waited for the mask being applied to her face to start doing its job. The lady specialist quietly hummed a tune to herself as she worked, not wanting to interrupt the customers' conversation.

Usagi, with her long hair tied back to keep it out of the way, had her eyes closed as she felt the mask cleansing her face. With a sigh of relaxation, she said, "Er… I did at one time. But no longer. Part of my reason for coming here was a fresh start in every area of life."

"I think I get it. So you'll spill about it at a later time. That's fine with me. But I will take that answer as an opportunity to ask you: Which of our Avengers do you have an eye on?" Jan's giggle stopped abruptly as the specialist applied the mask to Jan jaw.

"What?" Usagi's voice clearly displayed her embarrassment.

"You can't tell me you didn't notice? Stark has been flirting with you at every chance he gets. Banner talks to you more than most of us even though you've only been here for about a week. He goes out of his way to have those opportunities, too. I saw him go the long way from the kitchen to his lab just because it goes by your room. And it was around the time you normally seem to get out of your room. Then about fifteen minutes later, you came skipping into the room mentioning a nice conversation with him." Jan pointed out what was obvious to her, based on what she'd seen.

"Well… I noticed Tony's flirting. I am flattered, but he flirts with lots of girls so I kind of ignored it. I didn't really think Bruce was going out of his way… but that is nice of him…" Usagi thought for a moment. She hadn't really paid much mind to the other men of the group. Sure, she thought they were a good bunch of people, but she hadn't considered Tony or Bruce in a romantic way. Since arriving, there was only one she'd thought of even close to romantically about.

"And let's not forget Steve. I'm pretty sure he wants your babies." Jan bluntly added.

"Jan!" Usagi whimpered at her friend's words.

"Well, not right away. I just mean that… the way he watches you in a room when we all sit around is actually kind of heart-warming. It's almost like how a husband smiles at his wife… In that 'I adore you so much that I want to be with you forever and raise kids with you' kind of way." Jan was trying to think of other ways to explain her thoughts, but this seemed to be the best she could think of.

"… Yeah, Steve…" Usagi didn't know what else to say.

"From your reaction, I'd guess that you've been eyeing Steve, am I right?" Jan asked with a sly smile. The specialist had finished applying the mask and was now putting the supplies away, still humming a tune.

"I have… noticed him more than the others, yes. I don't really know how I feel just yet. He's very sweet and gentlemanly." Usagi admitted to Jan bashfully.

"And super ripped." Jan added. Usagi whimpered again as Jan teased playfully. The girls were having a good time as they chatted and relaxed in the salon chairs. Soon, however, both girls were out cold, asleep in the chairs.

The specialist walked over to the sleeping ladies and smiled broadly. "Glad you enjoyed your special masks. I made them especially for you." A giggle followed her words and she pulled a cell phone from her skirt pocket. After quickly pushing a few buttons, she spoke into her phone. "Red, I've caught two lady Avengers. Yes, Wasp and Cosmos. I'll have them bound and relocated by the time they wake up. What? Oh yes, I'll have Black help load the belongings once he gets here in a few minutes. Alright, see you shortly."

White hung up and shifted her focus to the two Avengers. "Well then, ladies, let's move you to the truck." The woman smiled and hefted Jan from her chair first. She started humming once again as she went through an employee only door that led to the back of the building where trucks would deliver the spa supplies. Right on time, a truck was just finishing parking. Once put in park, a man in a black body suit and mask with black mesh over the eyes hopped from the driver's seat to the ground.

"Nice job, White! I think we're going to have fun with this plan." His tenor voice almost sang with excitement. "Now then, hideout purple-delta, right?"

"Yessir, purple-delta. And help me lug their belongings too. Before the rest of the building wakes up. I spent too much time and money on the sleeping gas that I had circulating through the building and it would be a waste if somebody woke up before we vamoosed." White dropped the sleeping Jan and crossed her arms at Black.

"Now, now, this is all supposed to be fun, White. Don't be such a stick in the mud. Anyway, once we drop them at purple-delta, Red wants to see us about other plans on the table." Black relayed information to White. He then lifted Jan and carried her into the back of the loading truck. He tied her hand and feet and then laughed a bit. "You caught them in nothing but bathrobes while they were relaxing. Nice."

"I thought so too." White smirked and then headed back inside to grab the rest of their cargo.

~A~A~A~

**A/N:** And that's the end of the chapter, folks! Hope you all liked! I'm sorry I haven't updated recently. As always, I'm busied by school and related stuff. I managed to get this chapter done and I know where I'm going with it. So once I get some time, it shouldn't be too long, hopefully, before I can update again. Anyway, keep those reviews coming.


End file.
